Joel Embiid, Sixers hold off LeBron James-less Lakers

Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com.

Joel Embiid had 30 points and 10 rebounds, James Harden added 24 points and the Philadelphia 76ers hung on for a 126-121 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers without LeBron James on Wednesday night.

Two nights after the Sixers surprisingly beat Eastern Conference-leading Miami despite playing without Embiid and Harden, both stars returned for a tougher-than-expected win over the up-and-down Lakers. Tyrese Maxey scored 21 points for Philadelphia, which has won five of seven overall.

"Guys played well," Harden said. "Obviously, we wanted to play a lot better, especially defensively. But we’ll take the win, and we’ve just got to continue to get better in these last games before the playoffs."

James sat out to rest his sore knees, scuttling the potential showdown between the NBA's leading scorer and Embiid, who was a fraction of a point behind him.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) defends against Los Angeles Lakers guard D.J. Augustin (4) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Los Angeles, Wednesday, March 23, 2022. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)

Philadelphia coach Doc Rivers saw his team's second-half play behind its stars as an encouraging sign for the process of building teamwork between Embiid and newcomer Harden before the playoffs.

"Big picture, it’s going great, because they want to do it," Rivers said. "As far as doing it well, they’re up and down. If you’ve got two guys that want to get it right, they’ll get it right. It’s difficult because it’s being done with 22 games left."

Dwight Howard scored a season-high 24 points and Malik Monk had 23 for Los Angeles in a