Sixers Bell Ringer: PG nails 9 threes, McCain hits 5 in win vs. Bucks

SB Nation

2025-26 Sixers Bell Ringer standings: Tyrese Maxey – 18 VJ Edgecombe – 6 Joel Embiid – 6 Paul George – 5 Andre Drummond – 2 Jared McCain – 2 Dominick Barlow – 1 Adem Bona – 1 Justin Edwards – 1 Quentin

Grimes – 1 Kelly Oubre Jr. – 1 Trendon Watford – 1 15th roster spot – 1

The Sixers took down Doc Rivers and the Bucks in an exciting 139-122 victory on Tuesday night.

They had the services of Joel Embiid and Paul George, both of whom were out for the first portion of the team’s back-to-back in Charlotte. Quentin Grimes was ruled out with a right ankle sprain.

Plenty of plausible performances for Bell Ringer tonight, lets not waste any more time.

Joel Embiid: 29 points, 11-of-24 FG, 1-of-4 3PT, 9 rebounds (6 offensive), 5 assists, 1 steal

Embiid helped set the tone for the Sixers on Tuesday following his absence in Monday night’s beatdown at the hands of the Hornets.

About halfway through the first quarter, Embiid scored eight straight — two free throws, a free-throw-line jumper off a Paul George assist, tip layup off a Maxey miss, then a putback off his own miss in a two-minute span of game time.

His MVP-level touch from the midrange seems to have returned in full force, making 8-of-12 attempts against the Bucks.

His buy-in into setting screens has been fruitful for the entire Sixers offense. It forces the defense to decide between helping the ball-handler’s defender or Embiid on the soft roll that sets him up at the top of the key. We saw that continuously against the Bucks, as VJ Edgecombe, George, Tyrese Maxey and Jared McCain all benefitted from his solid screens and got him open shots in rhythm.

It is the kind of offensive structure that makes the post-centric Embiid with the ball on the block and everyone else standing, feel outdated.

It lends itself to a more bought-in system, which can lead to moments like this, where Embiid is running a fastbreak and Maxey rewards him with a lob that felt like Fall 2016 all over again.

Embiid’s physicality in the post has been special to watch, and he displayed it again on Tuesday, causing havoc on the boards and getting easy points on second-chance opportunities.

Paul George: 32 points, 11-of-21 FG, 9-of-15 3PT, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals

George had his best shooting game of the season, and perhaps of the past six years. He drained nine threes against the Bucks on Tuesday, a feat he has only accomplished twice prior in his career. His first career nine-three game came on Nov. 21, 2012, and his career best day from three came on Feb. 1, 2019 where he drained 10 threes as a remember of the OKC Thunder.

It began early where he knocked down his first two attempts from deep, and he carried the shooting touch throughout the game. He would start the third similarly with a pair of jumpers, then break down Kyle Kuzma on a crossover step-back three later in the quarter.

Nearing the end of the quarter, he drained back-to-back from three on consecutive possessions. At the top of the fourth quarter, he stayed hot and was alternating made threes with McCain as the Sixers began to put the Bucks away.

Not to be forgotten is George’s defensive impact, which helped slow down the Bucks’ somehow electric offensive attack.

Tyrese Maxey: 22 points, 9-of-19 FG, 2-0f-8 3PT, 9 assists, 3 rebounds

Maxey once again did not have his best shooting night, but it was a drastic improvement from his six-point dud 24 hours prior in Charlotte. Most notably was Maxey’s playmaking ability in a game where multiple guys were feeling it in various stretches.

He assisted on five of George’s nine threes, and dealt up a beautiful lob to Embiid for a monumental slam.

His ability to let other guys cook like George or Embiid opens up the floor for him to attack with his speed or force strong reactions from the defense to find an open shooter.

Maxey used his speed throughout, valuable on a poor shooting night. Five of his nine makes came within five feet of the rim as he utilized his floater when unable to get all the way for a layup. Not his best performance, but a strong game-managing display to help him get back on track.

Jared McCain: 17 points, 6-of-8 FG, 5-of-6 3PT, 3 assists, 1 rebound

McCain had his best full-game performance on the season vs. the Bucks, putting up an almost identical stat sheet to his get-right performance in garbage time against the Hornets.

He drained a deep three in the first and followed it up with a patient finish at the rim on the next possession.

Then it was quiet until the fourth, when the avalanche began again.

He drained one over Jericho Sims early in the frame. A couple minutes later, he hit one off an assist from George, one in transition over AJ Green, and a corner three for nine straight points in a 40-second span of game time. Every one of the threes was pivotal in putting the Bucks away late.

These two performances have to feel good for the second-year guard after struggling for the better part of the season so far in limited minutes.