NBA on Dec. 2: Embiid's consistent scoring matches Iverson record

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The six NBA games on Sunday saw the Joel Embiid put down another double-double to help the Philadelphia 76ers defeat the Memphis Grizzlies 103-95 at home. Dwyane Wade made two free throws in the last three seconds to claim the victory for the Miami Heat against the Utah Jazz 102-100.

Embiid matches AI's 12-year-old record

Joel Embiid (L) and Marc Gasol (R) give each other a hard time on the court. /VCG Photo

Fifteen points and 14 rebounds are good numbers for an NBA center but not good enough for a star big man like Joel Embiid. However, the 15 points he scored on Sunday made him the first 76er player to score double digits in the season's first 25 games in 12 years. The last player to do this was Allen Iverson in the 2005-06 season.

Scoring was not easy for Embiid in this game as he was guarded by Marc Gasol, the league's best defensive center, Embiid's four out of 13 field goal rate spoke for Gasol's defensive efficiency. On the other hand, Embiid gave Gasol a hard time too, as the Spanish giant only made four out of 14 shots, including two out of five three-pointers.

Jimmy Butler scores 13 points in the last quarter to help the Philadelphia 76ers defeat the Memphis Grizzlies 103-95. /VCG Photo

Though J.J. Redick dropped Philadelphia's highest 24 points while Ben Simmons delivered the highest efficiency with an 80 percent field goal rate, the biggest contributor to the team's win was, again, Jimmy Butler. Having scored only eight points in the first three quarters, Butler stood out in the last quarter and put down 13 points to throttle the Grizzlies' offense.

Wade locks victory with free throws

Dwyane Wade (R) and Donovan Mitchell (L) exchange jerseys after the game. /VCG Photo

Neither the Heat nor the Jazz are good offensive teams. Utah's field rates were 43.82 percent while Miami shot worse with 39.56 percent on Sunday. When the two sides kept missing shots, the big men got the chance to play more prominent roles. Rudy Gobert dropped 12 points, 18 rebounds and three blocks for the Jazz. Hassan Whiteside made better numbers of 23 points, 20 rebounds and three blocks.

After Ricky Rubio made a three-pointer to tie the score 100-100, neither team were able to put in even one field goal in the last minute of the game. Finally, 36-year-old Wade earned two free throws on Gobert and made both of them to claim the win for Miami. After the game, he hugged and exchanged jerseys with Utah's second-year guard Donovan Mitchell.

Spurs beat Trail Blazers with season-high 131 points

DeMar DeRozan #10 puts down 36 points to help the San Antonio Spurs beat the Portland Trail Blazers 131-118. /VCG Photo

Two teams going through hard times, the San Antonio Spurs lost the last two games by over 30 points and the Portland Trail Blazers have lost four of their past five games, met at the AT & T Center. In the end, the Spurs maintained their steady performance and won the game 131-118.

San Antonio saw six of the team's players score double digits, including 29 points by LaMarcus Aldridge and 36 points by DeMar DeRozan. By contrast, though Portland's back-court combination Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum respectively scored 37 and 24 points, having no one from the bench putting down over five points led to the team's loss.

Other games on Sunday: (away teams come first)

Phoenix Suns 96-120 Los Angeles Lakers

New Orleans Pelicans 119-109 Charlotte Hornets

Los Angeles Clippers 110-114 Dallas Mavericks