Joel Embiid passed Wilt Chamberlain in the Sixers record books on Friday night.
Embiid scored 35 points and 13 rebounds in 29 minutes against the Pistons, extending his streak of 30-point performances to 10 and his streak of 30 and 10 consecutive games to nine.
The last streak set a new Sixers franchise recordby guiding Embiid past Chamberlain.
The Sixers had no problems with Detroit, earning a 124-92 win at the Wells Fargo Center. They have won five games in a row and are 17-7.
The Pistons, who lost to Jalen Duren, Monte Morris and Marvin Bagley III, fell to 2-23.
The Sixers will conclude their matchup with a road game against the Hornets on Saturday night. Here are observations on their recent stunning victory:
Embiid's usual dozen in the first quarter
The Sixers started the night with one of their favorite moves to open the game. De'Anthony Melton made an Iverson cut, Nicolas Batum threw a high-low pass to Embiid and the big star sank a turnaround jumper over Isaiah Stewart.
However, Embiid's level was a little below the very high level he achieved on Wednesday night in Detroit with 30 first-half points. He lost the ball three times in the first few minutes and made serious mistakes such as a double dribble.
Tyrese Maxey sank an early three-pointer off a post-up pass from Embiid. It must have been nice for the 23-year-old to see a jumper go through the hole after his worst 2-for-13 shooting game in the opening game of the Sixers-Pistons miniseries. He also broke through for two fast-break layups in the next few minutes.
Embiid inevitably forced himself into a zone and unleashed a whirlwind of mid-range jumpers. He is often automatic around the nail; Whether his shot is controversial or not sometimes seems irrelevant.
Embiid finished the first quarter with 12 points on 5-for-8 shooting and six rebounds.
However, the Sixers only led by four points after the first matchday, which was mainly due to a cold start. Kelly Oubre Jr. blasted a corner kick three times, Maxey's attempt at the buzzer in the first quarter thundered in the backcourt, and the team missed nine of its first 10 three-point attempts.
The Pistons, who entered Friday night's game with the NBA's second-worst three-point percentage (33.8), started 1-for-11.
A lovely, busy evening
Detroit is much worse at exposing defensive flaws and weaknesses than the typical NBA team.
Still, the Sixers had plenty of defensive moments on Friday that would have been positive against any opponent. On an exemplary play, Melton guarded Jaden Ivey closely, denied him the use of a ball screen, and ultimately pushed the ball away. Embiid covered Melton impressively in the second quarter, quickly turning around as soon as Bojan Bogdanovic slid past the Sixers defense and blocked his layup.
Entering the game, the Sixers ranked second in the league in deflections per game and 15th in defensive turnover rate, according to Cleaning the Glass. Sixers head coach Nick Nurse mentioned before the game that he was confident his team's high deflection numbers would soon translate into better turnover-generating performances. The Pistons had 21 giveaways on Friday.
Stats aside, the Sixers' defense has clearly frustrated the Pistons. Detroit scored few easy points and had almost nothing to be excited about all night. Tensions and shenanigans between Stewart and the Sixers ultimately led to the referees issuing a technical foul on Embiid and Stewart with 39 seconds left in the second quarter.
Embiid missed five straight field goals after the first quarter but frequently added points at the foul line, bringing the Sixers into halftime with a very comfortable 22-point lead.
SSecond half a real no-contest
Oubre had perhaps the most explosive play of the night early in the second quarter when he drove inside from the baseline and threw down a big dunk.
Marcus Morris Sr. was also sharp off the Sixers' bench, knocking down three 3-pointers in the second quarter. The Sixers' second unit players were a bit passive at times, always looking for the “extra pass,” but they had several effective dribbles and provided many fruitful transition plays.
When Morris was back on the court in the second half, the Sixers had a 30-point lead and the Pistons appeared somewhere between extremely demoralized and completely apathetic. By the middle of the third quarter, the game felt like a preseason contest.
Embiid finished his night with a three-pointer, blocked Ivey, and received an ovation from the home crowd when he subbed in for Paul Reed.
The fans also enjoyed a few more three-pointers from Morris, who shot 5-for-5 from three-point range overall and ended up making more long-range shots than the entire Pistons team.