MANILA – Washington Wizards took advantage of the immediate exit of Joel Embiid to have a 122-114 win in Game 4 of the NBA Eastern Conference first-round playoffs series on Monday at the Capital One Arena in Washington.
Bradley Beal top-scored with 27 points for the Wizards while Rui Hachimura had 20 points and 13 rebounds. Rusell Westbrook garnered 21 rebounds, 19 points, and 14 assists.
Robin Lopez and Davis Bertans tallied 16 and 15 markers, respectively; Daniel Gafford secured 12 points and five blocks, while Raul Neto made clutch hits to finish with 11 points for the Wizards, which scraped the series deficit to 1-3.
Trailing 46-39 early in the second period, the Wizards bank on baskets of Lopez, Bertans, and Westbrook to clinch a 60-58 edge, but Daniel Green’s late triple let the 76ers notch a 61-60 halftime lead.
Washington’s attack continued in the third period on outside scores by Hachimura and Beal and inside shots from Westbrook for a 92-80 gap.
However, Philadelphia clawed its way back to cut the deficit to 102-103.
The 76ers even took a slim edge at 109-108 on a free throw by Ben Simmons before the Wizards went for the kill behind Neto, Gafford, and Hachimura to establish a 122-114 lead.
Tobias Harris fired a double-double of 21 points and 13 rebounds, Tyrese Maxey and George Hill gave 15 and 14 points, respectively, while Simmons got 13 points and 12 boards for the 76ers.
Apart from failing to close out the series, the 76ers also lost Embiid in the opening quarter due to a sore right knee after colliding with Lopez. He concluded the game with eight points, six rebounds, and two assists.
Meanwhile, Utah Jazz moved a win closer from advancing to the Western Conference semifinals after pounding Memphis Grizzlies in Game 4 of their first-round series, 120-113.
Donovan Mitchell led the Jazz with 30 points and eight assists, while Filipino-American guard Jordan Clarkson and Rudy Gobert have 24 and 17 markers, respectively.
BOX SCORE:
WASHINGTON 122 – Beal 27, Hachimura 20, Westbrook 19, Lopez 16, Bertans 15, Gafford 12, Neto 11, Smith 2, Len 0, Bonga 0, Gill 0.
PHILADELPHIA 114 – Harris 21, Maxey 15, Hill 14, Simmons 13, Green 11, Curry 10, Embiid 8, Thybulle 8, Korkmaz 7, Milton 6, Howard 1, Scott 0.
QUARTERSCORES:
28-31, 60-61, 92-80, 122-114./PN
