Image Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

NBA Daily Recap, December 20 – Bucks lose after NBA Cup triumph, Joel Embiid’s return and more

Let's take a look at what happened on Friday in the NBA.

Image Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Here’s the NBA Daily Recap for Dec. 20, 2024, where we witnessed three matchups. All three matchups added huge excitement. From the Cavaliers’ dominating run in the East to the Thunder catching an NBA-leading record on the road, let’s go through the key highlights from the NBA action on Friday night.

76ers 108-98 Hornets

Joel Embiid scored 34 points and nine assists on return to help the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Charlotte Hornets for the second time in a week. The Sixers improved to 91-6 after winning the fourth game in the last five. Tyrese Maxey added 23 points while Kelly Oubre Jr had 22 points for the Sixers. Paul George grabbed 10 rebounds and eight assists.

🏀 FRIDAY'S FINAL SCORES 🏀

Joel Embiid puts up 34 points and 9 assists to lead the @sixers to their second win in a row!

Tyrese Maxey: 23 PTS, 6 AST, 4 REB
Kelly Oubre Jr.: 22 PTS, 5 REB, 4 3PM pic.twitter.com/kP6l65hfQh
— NBA (@NBA) December 21, 2024

Vasilije Micic scored 20 points for the Hornets, who lost their fourth straight game. The 76ers outscored 41-27 in the opening quarter and Charlotte couldn’t reduce the deficit throughout the game. It was the 2nd time when Embiid, Maxey and George had played a game from start to finish and the Sixers won both. Hornets, who were playing without LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller, have dropped to 7-21.

Also Read:

Caves 124-101 Bucks

Max Strus enjoyed his long-awaited season debut as Caves routed NBA Cup Champions, Milwaukee Bucks 124-101. Cleveland maintained their unbeaten record against the Bucks this season and improved to 24-4 in the East. Donovan Mitchell scored 27 points for the Caves while Jarrett Allen had 10 points and 10 rebounds. Darius Garland added 16 points and Evan Mobley and Dean Wade each scored 15.

NBA Cup MVP, Giannis Antetokounmpo highlighted a 33-point performance with 14 rebounds. Only Middleton and Lopez reached in double-figures for the Bucks. Milwaukee are 2-2 without Damian Lillard this season and snapped their four-game winning streak with this loss.

Heat 97-104 Thunder

Oklahoma City Thunder extended their winning streak to 7 matches in the regular season with a close win over the Miami Heat. Jalen Williams scored 33 points and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 25 for the Thunder. Isaiah Hartenstein racked up 13 points with 18 rebounds. Four out of five starters reached double figures for Oklahoma City.

Tyler Herro scored 27 points and 12 rebounds for Miami, who snapped their four-game winning streak at home. Bam Adebayo added 17 points and 10 rebounds while Duncan Robinson and Dry Smith each had 13 points. Thunder had a 23-9 run to take an 81-70 lead heading into the fourth quarter. Oklahoma City are now 11-3 on the road, the highest in the NBA.

Image Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Donovan Mitchell

Joel Embiid

NBA Daily Recap

Oklahoma City Thunder

Philadelphia 76ers

Gulshan Sharma

nba

soccer

wnba

A native of Jaipur, Rajasthan, journalist, and a complete soccer and basketball fan, he found the huge interest with basketball by watching videos of Allen Iverson and Tony Parker, but fell head over heels in love with the sport during the Warriors’ championship era (2015-2018). A sports game addict since his late PS1, he’s also passionate about the Eagles, Inter Miami and the Fever. He’s fortunate to have seen all his favorite teams win championships. He also has a special love for cricket and football (soccer), where he is a fan of Royal Challengers Bangalore and Barcelona.