Sixers simply outmatched as they fall to Pistons, 116-93

Philadelphia was unable to slow down Detroit Saturday night as the Pistons raced past the Sixers by a final score of 116-93. Tyrese Maxey, Paul George and VJ Edgecombe combined for 62 points, but the team’s lack of defensive effort and ability prevented the Sixers from catching up.

Here’s what stood out.

Safe to say, the Pistons are a bad matchup for the Sixers

The Sixers have played the Pistons four times. They have also lost to the Pistons four times.

Joel Embiid has not been available for a single matchup between the two teams, and while his impact would be noticeable, there’s still no guarantee that the Sixers would find a way to compete against a Pistons team that has now locked up the first seed in the Eastern Conference.

Defensively, the Sixers did nothing to bother the Pistons; nothing to throw them off their game or add difficulty to their offensive execution. Even without the two-way threat that is Cade Cunningham, the Pistons were far bigger, stronger and generally more imposing, especially defensively.

The Sixers’ final four games will have a heavy impact on their matchup in the postseason, assuming they survive the NBA’s Play-In tournament. Should Philadelphia fall to the eighth seed and face these Pistons, it would be fair to consider that matchup less than ideal.

Paul George does it again

At what point is it safe to assume the Sixers are finally seeing the real Paul George? For the first time this season, George played in both ends of a back-to-back, but looked as fresh as ever, keeping the Sixers within striking distance for the majority of the game.

George was among the few effective players for the Sixers in this matchup. Scoring 20 points with relative ease and continuing to prove a difference maker defensively. The Sixers will need all of their top four ready to go to even have a chance to make some noise in the postseason, but Paul George’s renaissance has been the most positive development in this final stretch of the regular season.

Other takeaways

• VJ Edgecombe continues to learn and evolve throughout the season, and his midrange shot is becoming lethal. In an era where the middy is less common than ever, the ability to score in the midrange is still necessary when the game slows down in the postseason. Something to watch as Edgecombe makes his postseason debut later this month.
• The Sixers have just four games remaining this season, and they are now a half-game back of the Raptors for the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference. With their next two matchups against two of the toughest teams in the West, the Sixers are running out of chances to avoid the play-in tournament.

Up next for the Sixers

The Sixers are off for the holiday and will head to San Antonio to face Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs. In what is clearly their most difficult game, the Sixers will have to hope for a vintage Embiid performance to keep pace in a crowded section of the Eastern Conference standings.

Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. EST on Monday, April 6.

Unless otherwise stated, all stats included in this article are via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass, Basketball Reference or Team Rankings. All salary information via Spotrac.