76ers get much-needed, 104-97 win over Brooklyn
Mar 14, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Quentin Grimes (5) dunks the ball against the Brooklyn Nets during the fourth quarter at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
In the midst of a slide late in the season, the Philadelphia 76ers started to look more like themselves in a much-needed 104-97 win over the Brooklyn Nets. Philadelphia had dropped 5 of its prior 7 games, but is beginning to get back on track, now winning 2 of its past 3.
The Sixers improve to 36-31 on the season and advance up to the 8 seed in the Eastern Conference, just above the Atlanta Hawks. The Nets, who are already eliminated from the playoffs and play-in with about a month left in the season, fall in their 50th loss of the season, sitting at 17-50. Brooklyn sits at the 13 seed in the East, just above the Washington Wizards and Indiana Pacers.
The Sixers were without 4 starters in Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, and Kelly Oubre Jr. due to injury, and Paul George due to his suspension. The starting lineup consisted of Justin Edwards, Dominick Barlow, Adem Bona, Quentin Grimes, and VJ Edgecombe, and Philadelphia was also without Jabari Walker and Andre Drummond off the bench.
From the jump, Philly was in control. The first quarter was dominant on the defensive end for the Sixers, holding the Nets to just 16 points. Edwards and Cam Payne, who found their way to more minutes than usual, made their impact felt with the scoring column. Early on, both players were able to get to work at both the perimeter and inside to pick apart Brooklyn.
The second and third were much of the same, with Philadelphia continuing to put its foot on the gas. Brooklyn scored just 40 points in the two quarters combined, and as Philly continued their push on Brooklyn, Edwards was the clear primary option. Brooklyn had no answers for Edwards’ acrobatics at the rim as the Philly-native led the way for most of the game in the scoring column.
But when it wasn’t Edwards getting to the rim, it was Grimes shooting lights out from the mid-range. Grimes’ mid-range jumper was elite, utilizing it to get to his spots and knock down tough shots from inside the three to get his buckets. Grimes, while shooting just 1 for 6 from deep, finished with 28 points and 10 for 22 from the field. He additionally hit all 7 of his free throws.
15 of Grimes’ 28 points came in the fourth quarter, a much-needed boost as Philly began to tumble. Despite a 21-point lead going into the quarter, Brooklyn was able to sniff their way back into a competitive game. Philly’s offense was lackluster at best, with the defense completely giving in to all the Nets threw at them. Rookies Ben Saraf and Danny Wolf went to work in the fourth for Brooklyn, knocking down just about all the shots they took in the quarter. Brooklyn forced their way all the way back and gave themselves a one-point lead with just over 3 minutes remaining.
Despite the lead, Brooklyn was unable to close it out to finish the game. In the clutch, Edwards and Grimes hit tough inside layups and mid-range shots to take the lead, and clutch free throws at the end officially closed things out with a 7-point win.
Philadelphia has had its struggles all season long with closing out games, but was able to come through despite giving up an at one point 28-point lead Saturday afternoon. Philly moves on to play the Trail Blazers on Sunday.
Evan Hartenstein
Evan has been a member of the Philly Sports Reports team since March 2023. He is covering the 76ers and wants to pursue a long-lasting career in Sports Journalism.
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