Tyrese Maxey scores 45 points to break his slump, propel Sixers past Pacers in overtime

INDIANAPOLIS — The 76ers had another game, and, surprisingly, avoided another loss.

Sunday’s contest against the Indiana Pacers was destined to be a tough challenge when word broke last week that Joel Embiid and Paul George would both be sidelined. And after the Sixers lost to the rebuilding Toronto Raptors on Friday, the road matchup looked more like an insurmountable challenge.

Someone forgot to tell that to the Sixers.

Led by Tyrese Maxey’s second-half outburst, they exited Gainbridge Fieldhouse with a 118-114 overtime victory that brought their record to 1-2.

“We were ready to go from the start,” coach Nick Nurse said. “We responded to some tough losses and some tough situations. We ... did a much better job of executing, defense especially. I thought our defense was really good at times. And we did a much better job of showing some organization at the offensive end.”

Maxey snapped out of his shooting slump after struggling against the Milwaukee Bucks and Toronto Raptors. The All-Star point guard finished with a season-high 45 points on 14-for-32 shooting, making 12 of 15 foul shots.

“I could tell it started clicking back for him,” Caleb Martin said. “He got his confidence back. And he just started realizing that game, who he is and how he shows who he is and who he can be. So he just took control of the game, and really put us over the top.”

Thirty-eight of Maxey’s points came after intermission. He made just two of six shots in the first half and missed his first seven attempts in the third quarter. Maxey turned things around after knocking down his next four attempts. He capped the quarter by scoring on a 10-foot jumper with 2.3 seconds left, giving the Sixers a 79-78 advantage. Maxey scored 14 points in the quarter.

Maxey added another 14 points on 4-for-8 shooting while playing the entire fourth quarter, then scored 10 more in the extra session. Some of Maxey’s success came while Martin (17 points, 12 rebounds) was handling the ball. That enabled Maxey to slide to shooting guard and look for his own shot.

With his squad up 114-111, Maxey appeared to block Andrew Nembhard’s layup with 15.4 seconds remaining in overtime. But Nembhard split two free throws to make it a two-point game after a coach’s challenge determined that he fouled the Pacers guard.

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After a bit of foul tag, Maxey iced the game with a pair of foul shots to put the Sixers up, 118-114, with 2.5 seconds left.

“He obviously stayed with it,” Nurse said. “He had two games and a half of struggling. He had three of four wide-open looks at the start of the second half and didn’t hit them. But obviously, he just hung in there and he got some good looks.”

Three consecutive Indiana turnovers helped determine the outcome. Andre Drummond stole the ball on the second possession, leading to Martin‘s layup and the Sixers’ 103-102 lead with 32.4 seconds left.

Then Maxey was fouled after the third turnover. He made both free throws to make it a three-point game with 11.7 seconds remaining. But Tyrese Haliburton forced overtime after making a three-pointer to knot the score at the 3.5-second mark.

Indiana (1-2) was coming off Friday night’s humbling 123-98 loss to the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Haliburton, an All-NBA point guard, was held scoreless on 0-for-8 shooting. So he and the Pacers were looking to get back on the right track against the Sixers. Haliburton finished with 22 points and two assists.

“It was a good win,” Maxey said. “It felt good to get our first one. But again, it’s just one. But I think I’m more proud of the way we played and we fought and scratched and didn’t give up, and didn’t give up anything easy. And that was good for us.”