Adrian Fedkiw
Game 1 turned into a drinking game.
Every time the 76ers turn the ball over, chug a beer.
Every time the Sixers allow an easy basket in transition, take a shot.
Every time Kawhi Leonard or Pascal Siakam score unabated, take a double-shot.
At least it’s only one game and we don’t have to bust out the bleach yet. Leonard’s dominance over the Sixers continued as the Raptors cruised to a 108-95 win at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday night.
Leonard improved to 14-0 in his career against Philly after posting a playoff career-high 45 points on 23 shots. He had 27 of those points by halftime and also added 11 rebounds for Toronto, which went 3-1 against Philadelphia during the regular season, with the lone loss coming when Leonard didn’t play.
Kawhi made a big statement in Game 1 ✋ pic.twitter.com/8L4DR8uxXU
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 28, 2019
Leonard was too much to handle for not only Jimmy Butler, but the multitude of defenders that were put on him. The Sixers didn’t have an answer for Siakam either as he routinely got past the slower-footed Tobias Harris. Siakam had 29 points on 12-of-15 shooting.
Adjustments will need to be made by Brown defensively in Game 2, Siakam and Leonard were routinely getting easy baskets all night, it can’t happen again.
Kawhi hit a nasty combo in transition and Drake said: "he can't guard you" pic.twitter.com/Y1j7ydypzi
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 28, 2019
The Raptors missed four of their first five shots to begin the game before making their next 13 in a row. Leonard and Siakam combined to score 34 of the 39 points in the opening frame, with each of them pouring in 17 apiece. Toronto led 39-31 after a quarter of play and 61-52 at the break.
It got even uglier in the second half, with the Raptors building the margin up to as many as 20.
Marc Gasol did a solid job defensively on Joel Embiid, who was just 5-of-18 from the floor and scored 16 points. J.J. Redick led the Sixers with 17, while Simmons supplied 14 points and nine boards for Philly, which turned the ball over 20 times.
This was Embiid’s lone highlight of the night.
OH MY EMBIID pic.twitter.com/BwMJxZJJ87
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) April 27, 2019
Game 2 is Monday.