Embiid leads the 76ers to victory with 70 points scored

Joel Embiid scored 70 points to surpass Wilt Chamberlain and set a new franchise record for points in a single game, leading the Philadelphia 76ers to a 133-123 victory over the San Antonio Spurs and rookie Victor Wembanyama at Wells Fargo. Center.

Embiid broke the record with a coast-to-coast layup late in the fourth quarter, capping a legendary performance that saw him score 24 points in the first quarter, 34 in the first half and tie the previous career high of 59 points, set . last year against Utah, in 3 quarters after ending the third with a step-back triple.

At that point, the only question left was whether Embiid would return in the fourth or if he would spend the final 12 minutes on the bench as he has done several times this season in blowout victories.

San Antonio, however, held firm, led by a stellar 33-point, 7-rebound performance from Wembanyama, which drew a standing ovation when Embiid returned to the game with 6:38 left.

Embiid was then immediately fouled by Jeremy Sochan on his first offensive possession of the quarter, making both free throws to set a new career high. The crowd desperately hoped to see the reigning NBA MVP make history, to the point of booing his own player, Danuel House Jr., when he hit a three-pointer from the corner midway through the quarter.

Embiid finally tied Chamberlain’s previous franchise record of 68 points with a pair of free throws with 1:57 left, before his coast-to-coast layup broke the record. He ended up playing 36 minutes and 38 seconds.

It was a performance that made Hall of Fame coach Gregg Popovich’s pregame press conference seem prescient.

When asked if Sochan could help Wembanyama guard Embiid, Popovich simply said, “I don’t think it matters what we do.”