Joel Embiid had 53 points and 11 rebounds, leading the Philadelphia 76ers to a 131-113 win over the Charlotte Hornets on Sunday night.
With the home crowd serenading him with MVP! chants, Embiid became the first player in the NBA this season to post two 50-plus point performances, adding Sunday’s performance to a league-best 59-point effort on Nov. 13 against Utah.
‘The ball just found me,’ Embiid said. ‘I thought we moved the ball well all night and the ball just found me.’
Philadelphia 76ers’ Joel Embiid, left, tries to get past Charlotte Hornets’ Nick Richards
Embiid became the third player in Sixers history to have multiple 50-point games in the same season, joining Allen Iverson (2000-01 and 2004-05) and Wilt Chamberlain (1965-66 and 1967-68). It is also the 30th game in Embiid’s career with 40 points and 10 rebounds. The only other player in franchise history to accomplish that feat was Chamberlain.
‘We won,’ Embiid said. ‘It’s good to do that when you win. … I’m just happy that I’m contributing when we are winning.’
James Harden had 19 points, 16 assists, and nine rebounds to help Embiid’s effort.
‘He was in attack mode for the entire game,’ Harden said. ‘He made scoring look easy tonight. He was aggressive getting to the basket and his jumper was falling.’
Tobias Harris scored 17 points and De’Anthony Melton added 12 for Philadelphia, which shot 55.4%.
‘We didn’t run, but we played with pace and got open shots,’ Sixers coach Doc Rivers said.
Charlotte was
