Sixers Bell Ringer: Tyrese Maxey snaps out of mini-slump in loss to Bulls

Sixers Bell Ringer standings

Joel Embiid- 12

James Harden- 8

Tobias Harris- 5

Shake Milton- 4

Tyrese Maxey- 3

Paul Reed- 2

De’Anthony Melton- 1

Georges Niang- 1

Montrezl Harrell- 1

Playing their second straight game without superstar Joel Embiid and aiming for a fourth consecutive victory, the Philadelphia 76ers wrapped up a three-game homestand with the Chicago Bulls in town. Despite jumping out to a 13-point lead midway through the second quarter, Philadelphia fell, 126-112. They struggled all night to contain Zach LaVine (41 points, 11 threes) and Nikola Vucevic (19 points, 18 rebounds, 10 assists). Nonetheless, Tyrese Maxey looked himself with 26 points. Montrezl Harrell maintained his efficient scoring and defensive energy. Georges Niang poured in a quartet of long balls. It’s time to talk Bell Ringer. Let’s get to it.

Tyrese Maxey: 26 points, six assists, one steal

After drilling just three triples in his first three games back, Maxey connected on two in the first 5.5 minutes Friday and scored eight of the Sixers’ opening 15 points. Throughout the night, he married jumpers with sprightly downhill drives, scoring 26 points on 8-of-15 shooting. He buried five threes, went 5-of-6 at the line and constantly pressured Chicago’s defense with his scoring aura, headlined by a nifty stepback three from the top of the key.

In the non-scoring department, he rotated well once inside for a steal, was aggressive attacking the glass a few times and delivered a timely skip pass for a Shake Milton three — one of his six dimes on the night. The third-year guard was quite good.

Montrezl Harrell: 17 points, four rebounds, one steal

For the first time this season, Harrell’s now scored at least 15 points in back-to-back outings, this time with 17 on 8-of-12 shooting. Even though he came off the bench, he was the Sixers’ primary center, providing them a welcomed blend of finishing as a roller and mid-post creation. His finest stretch of the game occurred in the second quarter when he nabbed a steal, hit a face-up jumper, drew a charge and converted a putback off his own rebound during four consecutive possessions across a 44-second span.

Georges Niang: 12 points, three rebounds, one assist

Niang’s fourth and final long ball on Friday gave him 500 for his career. He’s seemingly quickened his release speed compared to last season and is capable of converting some highly impressive threes in the face of rather tight closeouts that might’ve not been possible a year ago. His best of the quartet was a stepback triple in the first quarter following a pump-fake. He also drew a charge and whirled a nifty feed inside for a Harrell jam when two defenders ran at him. The sharpshooting forward endured a brief slump last week, but has now netted 12 of 19 threes over the past three games. He’s up to 42.2 percent beyond the arc this year.