Philadelphia @ Phoenix preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 2, 2019 ) Philadelphia 132, Phoenix 127

The Philadelphia 76ers are digging beyond their vaunted starting five and developing a deep roster capable of stepping up in the biggest moments. The 76ers will lean on the supporting cast once again and try to make it two wins with superstar center Joel Embiid on suspension when they visit the Phoenix Suns on Monday.

Embiid was given the two-game ban for his role in a fight with Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns on Wednesday and watched his team recover from a 21-point second-half deficit and knock off Portland 129-128 on Saturday on Furkan Korkmaz's game-winning 3-pointer. Philadelphia is the last remaining unbeaten team in the NBA and Saturday's win marked the start of a four-game Western Conference trip that will take it through Utah and Denver before it returns to the east coast. The Suns are coming off their own trip and knocked off Golden State and Memphis to improve to 4-2. "We're coming along pretty well. Tonight was a good test for us," Suns point guard Ricky Rubio told reporters after the 114-105 win at the Grizzlies on Saturday. "We played good and then we started playing bad in the second quarter and then we regrouped and played better in the second half. I think everybody is starting to be on the same page and getting better every day. That's what we want to do. It's a long season. It's only six games in, but we have to be happy with the work we've put in. We've just got to keep working."

TV: 9 p.m. ET, NBCS Philadelphia, FS Arizona (Phoenix)

ABOUT THE 76ERS (5-0): Philadelphia brought in veteran big man Al Horford during the offseason to occupy the power forward spot next to Embiid in a front line designed to overwhelm the rest of the contenders in the East but moved him back to center with Embiid out of the lineup. Horford responded with a team-high 25 points on 12-of-24 shooting to go with seven assists, five rebounds and a pair of blocks. Small forward Matisse Tybulle moved into the starting lineup in place of Embiid while Mike Scott (12 points) and Korkmaz (11) stepped up off the bench.

ABOUT THE SUNS (4-2): Devin Booker is leading the team in scoring (23.8 points) but is no longer responsible for carrying the entire load with veterans like Rubio, center Aron Baynes and forwards Dario Saric and Kelly Oubre Jr. around. "It doesn't matter who scores," Phoenix coach Monty Williams told reporters. "It's 'We score.' If we have a 'We score' mentality, it's a fun way to play basketball. Our guys realize it. When I come back to the huddles, they're already talking about it. I just remind them, and they go out and execute." Baynes is averaging 22 points over the last two games and knocked down a career-high four 3-pointers on Saturday.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. 76ers PG Ben Simmons collected 18 points and 11 rebounds on Saturday for his first points-rebounds double-double of the season.

2. Phoenix SF Mikal Bridges reached double figures for the first time this season with 10 points on Saturday.

3. Philadelphia took the two meetings last season by an average of five points.

PREDICTION: 76ers 110, Suns 107