Sixers no match for 14-win Trail Blazers without Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey

PORTLAND, Ore. — The 76ers were without their two best players for the second consecutive game. And it showed.

The undermanned squad had no answers for the Portland Trail Blazers, losing 130-104 on Monday night at the Moda Center with Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey on the bench in street clothes.

“We started, we were ready,” Sixers coach Nick Nurse said. “We were executing things. Things were going very well, very similar to the other night [in a 111-105 loss to the Denver Nuggets]. Then things got a little shaky and we seemed to not have great composure.”

The loss dropped the Sixers to 29-16, extending their losing streak to three games. They’re also 0-3 in games without both Embiid and Maxey.

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The Blazers improved to 14-33, snapping a two-game skid. It was just Portland’s second win in six games.

The Blazers broke the game open with a 19-4 run to take an 80-63 lead with 5 minutes, 42 seconds left in the third quarter.

Portland forward Jerami Grant showed why he would be a solid trade option for the Sixers. He finished with a game-high 27 points on 7-for-13 shooting along with five rebounds and three assists. Grant also made 12 of 13 foul shots before sitting out the fourth quarter.

“We were trying to move a bunch of different guys off him,” Nurse said. “They were running some fairly simple actions for him that we weren’t scheme-wise doing very well, either. Yeah, he was hard for us to handle tonight.”

Blazers point guard Malcolm Brogdon, who would be another solid trade target, had 24 points on 10-for-14 shooting — including making 3 of 5 three-pointers — along with a game-high nine assists. Former Sixer Matisse Thybulle had three points on 1-for-6 shooting and one rebound in a reserve role. Rookie point guard Scoot Henderson added 22 points, mostly after the game was all but decided in the fourth quarter.

Kelly Oubre Jr. paced the Sixers with 25 points. Patrick Beverley added 14 points and five assists. Paul Reed had 11 points and six rebounds. Tobias Harris had nine points while struggling through 3 of 9 shooting after missing the last two games with the flu.

Embiid, the reigning MVP, missed his second straight while dealing with left knee soreness. Maxey missed his second game with a sprained left ankle.

Harris returned after missing the previous two games with the flu. He was joined by Nico Batum, Reed, Oubre Jr. and Beverley in the starting lineup.

The Sixers struggled offensively without their standout duo. They shot 44.6% from the field, including making just 5 of 29 three-pointers.

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The Sixers travel to San Francisco after the game to face the Golden State Warriors Tuesday night at the Chase Center.

The Warriors are 19-24 and have lost six of their last eight games. All-Star point guard Steph Curry is their leading scorer at 27.3 points per game. Forward Kevon Looney leads Golden State in rebounds at 6.9.