Ben Simmons’ 76ers make light work of Trail Blazers

BEN Simmons fell just short of a triple double as Philadelphia continued to look like a playoff team with a blowout win against the Trail Blazers.

Ben Simmons dunks the ball in the first half. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

BEN Simmons and the 76ers are rolling and look every bit a playoff team after a 101-81 blowout win against Western Conference contender Portland.

Simmons fell just short of another triple double, finishing with 16 points, nine assists, eight rebounds, three steals and two blocks in a match-up with one of the NBA’s best point guards in Damian Lillard.

Joel Embiid (28 points, 12 rebounds) led the way for home team, which improved to 10-7, including 4-3 at home.

Lillard was the only Trail Blazer to really get going, putting up 30 points, including 6/13 three-point attempts.

Ben Simmons is poetry in motion pic.twitter.com/9PSENlWCOY

— Bleacher Report NBA (@BR_NBA) November 23, 2017

Ben Simmons is RAPIDLY moving up my favorite players to watch list.

— Kelly Scaletta (@KellyScaletta) November 23, 2017

Defenders seem to underestimate the speed and athleticism of Ben Simmons. This Dude is fast. #Sixers

— Garry Cobb (@GarryCobb) November 23, 2017

Coming off a 21-point victory over Utah, the 76ers scored the game’s first 16 points and held a double-digit lead most of the way.

Portland missed its first 13 shots before Shabazz Napier came off the bench and hit a jumper with 5:01 left in the first quarter. The Blazers never got closer than eight. It was the Blazers’ lowest points total of the season, and the fewest that Philadelphia has allowed.

After Lillard cut Portland’s deficit to nine late in the third, Embiid answered with a basket, block, slam, jumper — and then the exclamation point. In the final seconds of the quarter, Lillard drove to the bucket, but Embiid spiked the ball away from behind volleyball style, and the frenzied crowd at the packed Wells Fargo Center erupted.