The Philadelphia 76ers will look to earn their second straight victory on Monday when they host the Miami Heat.
The Sixers (37-30) struggled a little on Saturday but won 109-98 against the Charlotte Hornets.
Tyrese Maxey scored 30 points, Kelly Oubre Jr. added 22 and Buddy Hield scored 14 for the Sixers, who played without Joel Embiid, Tobias Harris, De’Anthony Melton and Robert Covington.
Embiid, the league’s Most Valuable Player, was back at practice Sunday, but there is still no timetable for his return.
Harris missed Sunday’s practice with a sprained right ankle and remains questionable for Monday’s game.
Maxey shook off an elbow to the nose of Brandon Miller, who was ejected for flagrant infraction 2.
Maxey also took out a number of double teams.
“They sent a lot, they doubled it a lot,” Sixers coach Nick Nurse said. “Even when we pulled out, they were also doubling him up in solitary, so they had him dropping out a lot, so that was pretty good.
“Really happy he made it to the line. I complained about it enough before the game, I have to at least mention it. It was good tonight.”
Closing out games has been a persistent problem without Embiid, who has been sidelined after knee surgery.
Not against the Hornets.
“I just closed, we were finally able to close,” Hield said. “Making the right play, feeling unselfish, making the right read, being aggressive and ultimately trying to get that W.”
The Heat will arrive in Philadelphia after two consecutive victories against the Detroit Pistons.
Miami (37-30) beat the Pistons 108-95 on Friday and 104-101 on Sunday.
In Sunday’s win, Bam Adebayo scored a 3-pointer at the buzzer for a two-game sweep.
Duncan Robinson led the way with a season-high 30 points, while Adebayo added 20 points and 17 rebounds. Terry Rozier scored 17 points, Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 15 and Caleb Martin 10.
“Sometimes there’s karma in this game,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. “Bam was just outstanding for us, especially defensively, with everything he did and everything he had on the glass. Sometimes the ball finds that guy.”
Spoelstra further tweaked his roster without Jimmy Butler, Tyler Herro, Nikola Jovic and Kevin Love. Herro has been out since February 26 with knee and foot injuries.
Spoelstra is cautiously optimistic that Herro will return before the end of the regular season. They’ll need him if they aspire to another deep playoff run.
“That’s the hope,” Spoelstra said. “He’s making progress and we’re going to take care of him day by day, continue to progress. And once again, his body will let us know.”
This marks a franchise-record 32nd different starting lineup he has used this season.
“I’m very grateful to Bam,” Robinson told Bally Sports. “I finally turned the ball over, which I would have kicked myself for. We showed determination in the end. Thank goodness for Bam.”
Robinson made 7 of 12 3-pointers and reached 1,000 3-pointers faster than anyone in league history.
The Heat found themselves tied with the Sixers with an identical record, setting up a huge matchup on Monday.
“We’re going to rest, get some ice, sleep and do it again tomorrow,” Robinson said.
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