Sixers Bell Ringer: Game 4 - Sixers score TKO victory over Wolves

For a refresher on our Bell Ringer series, take a look back at our first post of the season.

Bell Ringer Standings

Ben Simmons - 1
Tobias Harris - 1
Joel Embiid - 1

A third-quarter brawl between Joel Embiid and Karl-Anthony Towns will be the headline from what was a dominating 117-95 Sixers win over Minnesota. It only feels fitting that on Fight Night, we select a Bell Ringer:

Ben Simmons: 16 points, 3 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 6 turnovers

Simmons did a lot of excellent basketball things on the night. He had some hellacious slam dunks, he played outstanding defense, and he made some nice feeds. But what you need to know first-and-foremost about Ben’s evening was that he grabbed Karl-Anthony Towns to try and break up the fight, put the Wolves center in a chokehold, and got KAT to TAP OUT! What a champion!

Joel Embiid: 19 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 1 turnover, 1 eye gouged

For the first half of the game, Embiid was playing bully ball on his way to another big night, helping the Sixers jump out to a huge lead.

Then, midway through the third quarter, tensions erupted between Embiid and Towns, and suddenly the 20,000-plus fans at the Wells Fargo Center and hundreds of thousands watching at home bore witness to NBA Fight Night. JoJo dotched a right-hand hook from KAT, then was caught gouging his rival’s eye. Mind you, this was a day after the Wolves went up the Art Museum steps a la Rocky with Towns playing “Eye of the Tiger” on a portable speaker. Just stop with the steps, Minnesota sports teams. The steps are not working for you.

After the ejections were announced, Embiid shadowboxed his way out of the tunnel to chants of MVP. Following the game, Embiid said, “I was built for this city and they were built for me.” (He also said something more R-rated and Mike Scott-inspired.)

From. Here.

Al Horford: 12 points, 16 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 turnover

Amidst all the hoopla, Horford was the curmudgeonly old guy who was “too old for this...” Horford meandered his way down to the edge of the fray during the brawl, just kind of watching with a “what are these crazy kids doing?” look on his face. It was a good thing Horford kept his cool, because after Embiid’s ejection, the Sixers needed Al out there grabbing every rebound and helping make sure the Wolves didn’t cut the lead closer than 12 points. They’ll likely need another big outing or two on the glass from Horford in the coming days pending an Embiid suspension.

Matisse Thybulle : 9 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists, 4 steals, 2 blocks, 3 turnovers

First, let’s acknowledge how incredible it is that a 4-steal, 2-block night for Thybulle just kind of comes with the territory at this point. Now with 12 steals through his first four career games, Matisse has the highest total at that point since Basketball Reference started keeping its database.

Yet, I viewed this as the best game of Thybulle’s young career due to the stuff on the other end of the floor. Matisse knocked down one of his three 3-point attempts, but most encouragingly, made two very nice, and very controlled, bounce passes on drives to a cutting Ben Simmons for slams. We hadn’t yet seen Thybulle look so composed offensively. It was quite an encouraging night for the rookie.

Furkan Korkmaz: 17 points, 2 assists, 1 turnover

After receiving well-earned derision for his early-season performance, Korkmaz had his breakout game of the 2019-20 season. Furkan went 3-of-8 from 3, helping him finish one point shy of a career-high. But he also made smart decisions on drives and slammed home a bucket off an Al Horford feed after making a smart cut. We haven’t really seen this side of Korkmaz outside of Summer League and European competition; it’s what Brett Brown has been waiting for in giving the young wing playing time.

James Ennis: 8 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, 2 turnovers

The king of the offensive rebound grabbed a whopping five tonight in what was a slightly more under-control effort than some of his subpar outings to start the year. Come in, play with energy, and don’t bowl people over for a charge call while trying to finish in transition — that’s the recipe for success for James Ennis.