National Basketball Association

Maxey, Sixers dominate Raptors to take 1-0 advantage

Updated Apr. 17, 2022 2:52 a.m. ET

Saturday was less of a playoff game and more of Tyrese Maxey's coming-out party.

The Philadelphia 76ers' second-year guard torched the Toronto Raptors, scoring 38 points on 14 of 21 shooting, catapulting Philly to a 131-111 win in Game 1 of their first-round Eastern Conference matchup.

It truly proved to be a team effort for the Sixers, who got 26 points, six rebounds and six assists from Tobias Harris, and 19 points and 15 rebounds from Joel Embiid.

James Harden finished with 22 points and 14 assists in a game in which the Sixers led from the 9:32 mark of the first quarter until the final whistle.

Still, the opener belonged to Maxey.

The 21-year-old Maxey is the youngest Sixer ever to score at least 30 points in a playoff game, scoring 21 of his 38 in the third quarter.

Sixers fans roared for "Maxey! Maxey! Maxey!" after each electrifying play — and he crammed a season’s worth into the third as he dismantled the Raptors.

"I think the only thing I’m going to remember is us winning," Maxey said after the game.

Maxey swished a 32-footer late in the period for a 20-point lead and sent his teammates on the bench into a frenzy. The Raptors were stunned and had no answer for him: Maxey made seven of eight shots overall, both 3s and all five free throws in 12 minutes.

Pascal Siakam scored 24 points for the Raptors, who lost rookie Scottie Barnes to an ankle injury to worsen what was already a miserable night. OG Anunoby scored 20 and Fred VanVleet added 18.

The Sixers took control in the first 24 minutes and Maxey stepped on the gas in the third against a team that won the season series 3-1 (with Embiid and Harden in the lineup for the last two).

Maxey, the 6-foot-2 bundle of energy out of Kentucky, led the fast start early with a pair of 3s and 10 quick points that had the Sixers rolling with a double-digit lead.

The Sixers are Embiid and Harden’s team, and as they go, so go the Sixers. But Maxey has become more than just an able replacement for the traded Ben Simmons.

"I saw growth, man," Harden said of Maxey. "I saw him from being up-and-down and not really having consistent minutes last year in the postseason to starting and having a huge role on a championship-contending team."

Maxey emerged as a reliable scoring option — 18.7 points and 48% on 3s after the All-Star break — and was on target from tipoff against Toronto. He made six of 10 shots and his 15 points in the first half were one shy of matching his playoff high set last season in Game 6 against Atlanta.

"He’s been doing that all season," Embiid said of Maxey. "It’s only one game. We need to do it three more times."

Game 2 is set for Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. ET in Philly.

Associated Press contributed to this report.