The Sixers waved the white flag before the game even started. One by one, Joel Embiid, Paul George and Tyrese Maxey were all ruled out. Despite that, the depleted Philly squad forced OKC to sweat out a close victory.

The Sixers could not overcome a gigantic difference in manpower Tuesday night against the Western Conference-leading Thunder They fell to a 118-102 loss at Wells Fargo Center, dropping to 15-23 with their third consecutive defeat.

Oklahoma City lost the second and third quarters by 10 combined points, but its talent advantage loomed large in the other two frames.

(AP Photo/Matt Slocum) Oklahoma City Thunder’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, left, goes up for a shot against Philadelphia 76ers’ Jeff Dowtin Jr. during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum ...

Despite most — this beat writer included — assuming that the Sixers would have their doors blown off by the NBA's best team defense and individual scorer, the nine players donning red, white and blue played with absolutely no expectation that they were going to be on the wrong end of a blowout.

The banged up version of the Philadelphia 76ers put up a great effort, but they fall short to the West-leading Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 32 points on 12-of-15 shooting to guide the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder to a 118-102 win over the short-handed Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday.

The G League lineup for the Philadelphia 76ers made things interesting against the mighty Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday.

PHILADELPHIA — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 32 points and Jalen Williams had 24 to lead the Oklahoma City ... 76ers with 25 points, and Jeff Dowtin Jr. had 18. Thunder: Gilgeous-Alexander ...

The Sixers entered the contest missing Joel Embiid, Paul George, Tyrese Maxey, Andre Drummond, Caleb Martin, and others and it was an uphill battle. The Thunder opened up a 21-point lead in the first quarter and led by double digits for most of the night.

Oklahoma City plays the Dallas Mavericks after Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 54 points in the Oklahoma City Thunder's 123-114 victory against the Utah Jazz.

The Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder are playing the fourth and final matchup of the season in OKC on Thursday night, with both teams playing on the second night of a back-to-back. This budding rivalry nearly reached a boiling point last week,