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 ...

The shorthanded Sixers may have fallen to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday night, but that doesn’t mean there weren’t a number of highlights from the squad’s effort worth watching.

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.

Jalen Williams contributed 24 points for the Thunder, while Cason Wallace notched 18 points. Oklahoma City shot 55.6 percent ... Justin Edwards (25 points) and Jeff Dowtin Jr. (18) set new career ...

Here are the three biggest takeaways for the Philadelphia 76ers following a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday.

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

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

In his past 10 games, Thunder forward Jalen Williams is averaging 6.1 free-throw attempts, connecting on 77% of them.

Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault and Jaylin Williams talked to the local media. Daigneault discussed Jalen Williams' increasing free-throw rate over the last few weeks. Williams