Sixers star Joel Embiid exits game after getting struck in face

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Joel Embiid left the Philadelphia 76ers‘ loss to the Indiana Pacers shortly before halftime Friday night after being struck in the face going for a defensive rebound.

Embiid was battling Indiana’s Bennedict Mathurin when he caught an errant forearm and elbow to the bridge of the nose. Embiid crumpled to the ground as play continued up floor and stayed down near the Philadelphia bench, holding his face.

The team ruled him out early in the second half with “impact to the right side of the face” and said he would undergo further testing. He had 12 points, four rebounds and five assists in 17 1/2 minutes in the 76ers’ 121-107 loss.

Embiid was only playing his sixth game out of the 23 that Philadelphia has played. He has been bothered by swelling in his left knee and also served a three-game suspension for a physical incident with a reporter.

Embiid also has had number of face injuries, including an orbital bone fracture after a collision with Toronto’s Pascal Siakam during the 2022 playoffs and one in 2018 after colliding with teammate Markelle Fultz. Last year, Embiid had Bell’s Palsy during a first-round playoff loss to New York.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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