Joel Embiid had 29 points (15 in the fourth quarter) and 14 rebounds, and the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Washington Wizards 113-107 in the season opener for both teams at Wells Fargo Center.
Embiid’s driving layup put the 76ers ahead for good with 1:09 left in the fourth quarter.
The Wizards got within 107-105 on Bradley Beal’s 19-foot step-back jumper with 34 seconds to play, but Ben Simmons answered with a dunk, and the Wizards got no closer.
Tobias Harris’ 2 free throws with 15.0 seconds left made it 111-105 and put it away.
During clutch time, the 76ers outscored the Wizards 18-10. Simmons scored 6 of the 76ers’ 18 on 3 for 3 shooting. With 3:12 left, Shake Milton stole the ball from Russell Westbrook, and his driving layup off it tied the game at 99.
Embiid scored 15 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter.
For the Wizards, Beal had 31 points and 4 steals, and Westbrook added 21 points, 11 rebounds and 15 assists, his first triple-double of the season.
The 76ers grabbed 10 offensive rebounds to the Wizards’ 5 and outscored them 52-26 in the paint. The 76ers’ starters were outscored 47-21 in 16 minutes together.