Five Figures: Sixers own the boards in win over Timberwolves

0.872 points per possession (per Cleaning The Glass)

The Sixers suffocated Minnesota’s offense as the Timberwolves averaged just 0.872 points per possession over the course of the game. The T-Wolves turned the ball over 22 times and shot an abysmal 46.2% eFG%. It always helps when Andrew Wiggins goes 6 for 16 from the floor, but the Sixers deserve credit for yet another solid defensive outing.

30.4% OREB% (per Cleaning The Glass) and a bonus: 30 2nd chance points (per NBA.com)

The Sixers utterly dominated the offensive glass as they racked up 30.4% of their misses. For a 25-point victory in which the Sixers totaled over 110 points, you might expect to read that Brett Brown’s squad was especially efficient on offense, but that wasn’t the case. Philly got to the line a good amount, but as a team they had an effective field goal percentage of 51.1% — not too terrible but nothing that jumps off the screen either. The way the Sixers were able to overcome a mediocre shooting night and get a comfortable win was their ability to rebound their own misses and capitalize on 2nd chances, which generated 30 points... THIR-TY! Domination of the offensive glass has been a theme in each of the Sixers’ wins as they sit 4th in the NBA in OREB%.

17 points (per NBA.com)

Just when I thought I was out, he pulls me back in. Furkan Korkmaz scored 17 points against the Timberwolves while playing a bench-high 21 minutes. Korkmaz made a couple of momentum shots draining two 3PTs early in the 4th quarter to help stomp out what looked to be a possible comeback brewing for the T-Wolves. He finished shooting 5 for 10 from the floor, including 3 for 8 from behind the arc, and sank 4 of his 5 free throws. Kork looked to be doing too much at times — I remember a step back three he had no business firing — but he mostly limited shot selection to threes and getting to the line. That’s the sort of efficiency Brett Brown needs out of Korkmaz.

+26 (per NBA.com)

You should never put much into single game plus-minus, but I’m going to do so anyway as it accurately encompasses Al Horford’s impact on this game. Horford was a game-high +26 in 33 minutes. Al played all-around solid defense and was especially effective on the glass totaling 16 rebounds. Some of defensive boards led to transition breakouts for easy buckets while I counted at least 8 points resulting from Horford’s offensive rebounds. The Sixers comfortably won a game in which Joel Embiid was ejected with a quarter-and-a-half left to go — imagine that! I can’t give all of the credit to Horford for that, but his presence is undoubtedly a large part of the team’s ability to stay afloat when without their star center.

42% of shots came at the rim (per Cleaning The Glass)

The Sixers frequently got to the bucket against the Timberwolves, taking 42% off all of their shots at the rim. As a team, Philly shot 71% on those attempts and the frequency of attempts around the hoop contributed to the team’s 28 FTA. The Sixers’ shot selection could improve a bit from this game, as they attempted just 25 threes and put up a relatively high amount of long midrange shots. But Brett Brown has to be pleased with the distribution of shots at the rim.