Looking to avoid losing their second straight home game to the red-hot Orlando Magic, the Sixers returned to the Wells Fargo Center on Friday night. This time they had nine-time All-Star Paul George at their disposal. George, who had his best game as a Sixer on Tuesday night, leading the team to a road win over the Charlotte Hornets, missed the Sixers’ narrow loss to Orlando on Wednesday as the Sixers treated George’s left knee in light of his recent return for the second bone bruise that occurred he suffered in as many months.

In addition to George, veteran center Andre Drummond returned to action after missing three games after suffering a sprained right ankle a week earlier. Drummond was listed as questionable for Friday’s game, the first game he could potentially return to — and that’s exactly what he ultimately did, giving Sixers head coach Nick Nurse a chance to bulk up down low.

George and Franz Wagner traded blows early on, with Orlando outscoring the Sixers by two points in the first quarter. However, the Sixers steamrolled Orlando in the second quarter, giving them a commanding lead at halftime. The Magic landed a big blow in the second half, but otherwise it was all Sixers, with George and KJ Martin carrying the bulk of the workload en route to an impressive win against a very good opponent.

Here’s what stood out from the Sixers’ 102-94 win on Friday night:

Drummond’s return allows Nurse to make a breakthrough

The Magic are known for their enormous size, which was a problem for the Sixers for most of Wednesday’s game. With Drummond available, Nurse reverted to a look he liked in a game against the Houston Rockets last month, starting Drummond alongside Guerschon Yabusele. Yabusele, a power forward by trade, played primarily center in his first season with the Sixers due to Joel Embiid’s two extended absences. Nurse has continued to look for opportunities for Yabusele to return to his natural position, and Drummond’s return against a Magic team that started two traditional bigs in Wendell Carter Jr. and Goga Bitadze made it an easy decision for Nurse.

While Drummond and George returned to the starting lineup, KJ Martin and Jared McCain each went to the bench, while Tyrese Maxey and Kelly Oubre Jr. started in the backcourt. Nurse believes George’s presence alongside Maxey in the starting lineup poses enough of a scoring threat to allow McCain to act as a spark plug off the bench, which in turn gives the Sixers much greater defensive versatility around Maxey and George – hence the decision , choosing Oubre over McCain, the Eastern Conference’s October-November Rookie of the Month who had looked great in his last three games.

George and Wagner control the action early on

The first few minutes of this game were all about George, who hit all four of the Sixers’ shots over their first three possessions and knocked down two mid-range jumpers to open the game:

George was also in full control of the pace of the game, having a lot to do with the ball and – only after his many early shots – trying to facilitate it. George isn’t consistently accurate enough to be a solo offensive engine, but he’s talented enough to make impressive plays as a drive-and-kick player. He did just that, setting up an early three-pointer for Maxey and a one-post-up basket for Yabusele in his first five-minute stint of the game.

Wagner, Orlando’s rising star whose 35 points were crucial in Wednesday’s win, picked up right where he left off, scoring 15 points in nine minutes and switching early in the game. He knocked down three triples and did whatever he wanted for the second straight game against all sorts of unique defensive coverages Nurse threw his way.

Martin provides an important early bloomer

Martin was the Sixers’ first frontcourt reserve to enter the game – notably ahead of Caleb Martin – and the fifth-year forward continued his recent solid run of play with his most productive offensive quarter of the season.

KJ Martin scored 10 points in the first quarter by shooting 4-for-4 from the field, 1-for-1 from beyond the arc via a corner triple and 1-for-1 at the free throw line. The excellent route began with this awkward one-one end to a ride:

Aside from his triple, KJ Martin’s scoring prowess came from multiple transition opportunities. Given his elite athleticism, he can be a real weapon in this situation, and with this transition finish early in the second quarter, he improved his line to 12 points on perfect 5-on-5 shooting:

KJ Martin continues to provide the Sixers with prime two-way minutes whenever he gets the opportunity.

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MORE: KJ Martin and Maxey want to master the two-man game

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The Sixers prevailed with a great start to the second quarter

The Sixers outscored Orlando 14-3 in the first five minutes, 51 seconds of the second quarter, thanks to a phenomenal two-way stretch that began while Wagner remained on the floor. When an opposing player plays like Wagner does, it’s important to gain the minutes when he’s resting, and the Sixers beat Orlando in the first half during that time.

Drummond played 15 minutes in the first half, scoring five points and grabbing eight rebounds. Drummond also had three steals, making it one of his better halves of play all season.

He set the tone for the quarter by opening it by harassing Franz’s older brother, Mo Wagner, for an easy layup, then pulling the ball away from Wagner, sparking a possession that ended with Drummond at the offensive glass fought and drew a foul:

Finally, Orlando head coach Jamahl Mosley called a timeout after George broke the run with his first triple of the game – and then let out a scream:

Noticeably absent from the run was Ricky Council IV, who was not in Nurse’s regular rotation. Council had two outstanding games up to the end of November but have been less impressive in two games since then. When George and Drummond returned to the rotation, Nurse had to either remove Council or Kyle Lowry from his rotation or increase to a 10-man group. When Caleb Martin went to the locker room with an ankle injury late in the first frame, it was veteran floor general Lowry who checked in. (Caleb Martin returned to the game midway through the second quarter).

In seven minutes of the first half, Lowry neither scored a point nor attempted a shot. He didn’t collect a single rebound. The 38-year-old was also charged with two fouls. But he had two assists and the Sixers outscored Orlando by 13 points in his minutes.

George caps off an outstanding first-half performance, making up for Maxey’s inability to find a rhythm

George scored a dozen points in the first half, but it was only fitting that he capped off an excellent second quarter with a drive and dump-off assist to Yabusele. It was George’s sixth assist with four rebounds and a team-high +16:

George did have two turnovers on ambitious passes in the first half, but that comes with the territory when it comes to George. His performance in that first half was mostly strong, which helped make up for the fact that Maxey was nowhere to be found: Maxey’s early three-pointer on his first shot attempt was the only shot he made before halftime, as he scored three points, zero assists and zero rebounds on 1 of 4 shooting from the floor in 15 minutes.

The third quarter turns into a slow slugfest, but the Sixers find juice and make a late push

The Sixers had absolutely nothing coming out of the locker room offensively, scoring just five points in the first six minutes and switching in the third quarter before Nurse allowed his team to regroup with a much-needed timeout. Such a terrible offensive stretch would normally immediately bankrupt a team, but the Sixers stayed on top with solid defensive efforts (admittedly helped by a subpar offensive stretch on Orlando’s part).

Maxey and George each struggled to hit the ball, and none of their supporting cast could fill any of the gaps. But with their defensive intensity, the Sixers did enough to prevent Orlando from taking control. Then the Sixers got on offense and a remarkable finish to the quarter gave them excellent positioning heading into the final frame.

The Sixers led the Magic 59-57 with about three minutes left in the third quarter. Oubre hit his first three-pointer of the game, a much-needed three-pointer that marked Maxey’s first assist of the game. Then McCain missed a transition layup, but KJ Martin followed up with a powerful put-back slam:

Maxey, who expressed his frustration with the officiating team throughout the game, broke through a gap and scored a double at the rim. (Maxey actually missed the free throw line, where the Sixers again had major problems.) The Sixers maintained a 12-point lead heading into the fourth quarter.

In the ropes, Magic lands a haymaker

George hit his second triple of the game at 10:25 of the fourth quarter to give the Sixers a 78-61 lead – a game-high 17 points deficit:

The Sixers may have been another blow when they wiped out the Magic, but Mosley’s team showed impressive resilience in the face of adversity.

The Magic went on a 10-0 run in which they scored on four consecutive possessions while forcing three missed shots and one turnover. Five man nurse unit consisting of Lowry, McCain, George, KJ Martin And Drummond was completely outplayed for three minutes and 40 seconds, so he wisely called a timeout and brought Maxey back into the game.

Thanks to George’s calming presence, the Sixers create separation and prevent the game

As in the victories in which he was a part, George served as an example of how the Sixers can remain calm, cool and collected under pressure. With the Sixers on the verge of blowing a significant lead, George casually knocked down a mid-range jumper after the timeout, then assisted on another bucket from KJ Martin, drew a foul, knocked down two free throws and drove and shook to Yabusele for the decisive three pointer.

With his timely scoring and consistent playmaking, George looked every bit the player the Sixers believed they would sign in the summer to a four-year, $212 million maximum contract. He led them to a strong win against formidable opposition in that game, with the Sixers improving to 6-15 on the season.

Next: The Sixers have four days off starting next week. First, though, they’ll board a weekend flight to Chicago and face the Bulls on Sunday afternoon.

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