The Philadelphia 76ers defeated the New Orleans Pelicans, 117-107, at Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday night.

The 76ers (28-19) and the Pelicans (18-29) played an encounter that proved to be tighter than what anyone could have expected based on both teams’ records, but in the end, Philadelphia secured a rather easy win against one of the most underperforming teams in the Western Conference. New Orleans enjoyed a better start and jumped out to a 24-20 lead in the first quarter, an advantage they would extend following a 34-30 score in the second quarter. However, Philadelphia played the second half with a different approach and outscored their rivals by a 36-28 score in the third quarter, evening up the scoreboard with only 12 minutes left on the clock. Philadelphia carried that momentum into the final quarter and outscored their rivals by 10 points in the final minutes (31-21), winning the game comfortably despite the fact that it seemed as if that wouldn’t be the case based on the first-half outcome.

Joel Embiid led the way for the Sixers with 42 points, but he also added 14 rebounds, four assists and four blocks. Tobias Harris had 33 points and 11 boards, but he also chipped in with two blocks. Furkan Korkmaz had 13 points, three rebounds and two assists, while Tyrese Maxey delivered 10 points, five dimes and three boards. Philadelphia shot 46.4 percent from the field.

Willy Hernangomez was one of New Orleans’ best players and ended with 29 points and 10 rebounds, while Nickeil Alexander-Walker had 31 points to go along with five assists and four rebounds. Herbert Jones had 12 points, and Jose Alvarado delivered 11 points as a starter. Jaxson Hayes impressed and recorded 15 points with five boards off the bench. New Orleans shot 48.2 percent from the field.