WASHINGTON, April 21 (Xinhua) -- Two-time NBA All-star Joel Embiid scored 31 points, energizing the Philadelphia to a 112-108 victory in a play-off away game with the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday.
The 76ers now take a 3-1 series lead in the first round and could advance in the Eastern Conference with a victory on home court on Tuesday.
Although missing game three with painful left knee, Embiid, the fulcrum of the Sixers, gave no chance for Nets to match up with 31 points, 16 rebounds, seven assists, six blocks and two steals in less than 32 minutes.
Philadelphia, 10 points behind in the first half of the third quarter, organized powerful counter-blow in the second half.
Despite the loss of Jimmy Butler, who was rejected in the third quarter, Philadelphia was uplifted by the return of Embiid, who scored eight straight points in the fourth quarter.
With only 18.6 seconds left, Embiid beat Traveon Graham and passed the ball to Mike Scott in the corner, who grasped the chance to score the game-winning 3-pointer.
Whether Embiid, who played only 31 minutes in Saturday's game, will be fit to play the following games remains uncertain since he still has to deal with knee injury.
In the other Eastern Conference playoff on Saturday night, Milwaukee Bucks beat Detroit Pistons 119-103 to take 3-0 lead in the first-round series. Seven players scored in double figures, overcoming the strong return of Blake Griffin, who got 27 points, seven rebounds and six assists. It still remains uncertain whether Griffin will play the following series, or how much if he does.
On Western Conference, Denver Nuggets beat San Antonio Spurs 117-103 to tie the series with two wins apiece. Nikola Jokic scored highest with 29 points and 12 rebounds; Jamal Murray and LaMarcus Aldridge added 24 points respectively.
Houston Rockets scraped a win 104-101 against Utah Jazz to take a 3-0 series lead. James Harden did himself justice by overcoming his shooting issue and leading Houston to the victory with 22 points, 14 of which in the fourth quarter. Donovan Mitchell, despite scoring the highest 34 points, struggled in shooting with only 9 of 27 attempts.
