Wizards Stay Alive After Defeating Sixers in Game 4 on Monday

The Washington Wizards managed to stay alive in the playoffs as they defeated the Sixers in Game 4 on Monday.

The Philadelphia 76ers and the Washington Wizards met up for Game 4 on Monday night. A little over a week ago, the Sixers and the Wizards fired up the first-round series in Philly. Although Game 1 was a tight one, the Sixers came out on top.

Over the next two games, the Sixers dominated the Wizards with ease. In both matchups, Philly's starting core managed to gain a significant enough lead to get the fourth quarter off, offering up minutes to the reserves.

Considering the Sixers got off to a 3-0 start, with two-straight blowouts, it seemed a sweep was brewing on Monday night in Washington. But the Wizards weren't ready to pack it in just yet. 

There was a clear urgency from Washington, who remained neck and neck with the Sixers throughout the first quarter. Although Philly outscored the Wizards 31-28 through the first 12 minutes of action, the Sixers suffered a huge loss early on.

During the first quarter, Embiid was in the midst of wrapping up a long first shift on the floor. After appearing in the game for a little over 11 minutes, the big man suffered an injury as he attempted a tough layup over Washington center Robin Lopez. 

No official word from the Sixers yet on Joel Embiid’s injury, but here’s the fall he took not long before leaving for the locker room.pic.twitter.com/s3NufD3LXs

— Chase Hughes (@chasedcsports) June 1, 2021

What looked like a back injury at first turned out to be a knee-related setback for Embiid. As he went to the locker room immediately after coming off the court, Embiid would never return to the bench on Monday night.

According to Sixers officials, the All-Star was dealing with right knee soreness and was ruled out for the rest of the matchup. At that point, the Wizards took advantage as Robin Lopez collected eight of his 14 first-half points with Embiid out of the game.

When the third quarter rolled around, the Wizards hit their stride on both sides of the ball as they held the struggling Sixers to just 19 points while putting up 32 of their own. At that point, it seemed the Sixers' chances of making a comeback were slowly dwindling as Washington possessed a 12-point lead going into the final quarter.

However, Philly wasn't ready to give up. Sixers rookie guard Tyrese Maxey was a huge spark off the bench as he collected 10 points, shooting 4-8 from the field in seven minutes. Furkan Korkmaz also gave the team a boost as he knocked down seven points in 10 minutes. 

Although the Sixers came back, the Wizards found a way to close the game out. As Wizards head coach Scott Brooks elected to roll with the 'Hack-a-Ben Simmons' strategy down the stretch, Philly's offense was non-existent. 

Meanwhile, on the other end, Washington scored just enough points to get a comfortable lead so they could close the game out with a 122-114 victory. Now, the series will head back to Philly as the Sixers, and the Wizards will compete for Game 5 on Wednesday night.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_ & Instagram: @JGrassoNBA.