The hits keep coming for the Sixers as VJ Edgecombe goes down with back injury

The hits keep coming for the 76ers.

In the final seconds of the second quarter of Tuesday’s blowout loss to the Spurs, VJ Edgecombe took a hard foul after San Antonio’s Carter Bryant tried to block his shot before the final buzzer. Edgecombe fell to the court and was down in pain for several seconds, before bouncing back to make two of his three free-throw attempts.

But Edgecombe did not return and was ruled out after halftime because of lower back soreness. He finished with six points and four rebounds in 19 minutes, 38 seconds.

The Sixers returned to the court less than 24 hours later for the second half of a back-to-back against Utah (7:30 p.m., NBCSP), and they’ll be without Edgecombe. Nick Nurse did not have an update on Edgecombe’s status immediately after the loss to the Spurs, but the team announced Wednesday that the rookie suffered a lumbar contusion and will miss their game against the Jazz. He will be reevaluated before Saturday’s game against the Hawks.

Tyrese Maxey, after being pulled from the game midway through the third quarter, spent the rest of the period with Edgecombe in the locker room. He said he’d call him Tuesday night for another update.

“No one likes getting hurt, but he’s the same, smiling, happy,” Maxey said. “We had a good conversation. That’s my little bro. I’m going to check on him. I couldn’t continue the game without checking on him.”

Before Edgecombe’s injury, the Sixers already were missing Joel Embiid, who will miss at least the next two games with a right oblique strain, and Kelly Oubre Jr., who was ill. The team also is without Paul George as he serves a 25-game suspension for taking a banned substance.

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Losing Edgecombe even just for a day could have a big ripple effect on games to come.

The Sixers entered Wednesday in sixth place in the Eastern Conference, just a half-game ahead of the seventh-place Orlando Magic.

Since January, the Sixers have gone 2-9 without Embiid, whose availability remains uncertain. And Edgecombe, who has played 57 of the Sixers’ 61 games, has been a workhorse. He is averaging 15.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 3.9 assists in his rookie season. He’s the team’s fourth-leading scorer, behind Maxey, Embiid, and George. He’s also among the NBA leaders in minutes at 35.1 minutes per game, trailing only Maxey’s league-leading average of 38.3 minutes among Sixers.

Without Edgecombe or Embiid, even more offensive responsibility will fall on Maxey’s shoulders.

“We’re going to keep pushing,” Maxey said. “I’m going to be here every night, as long as I can move around and try to play and do those different things. I’m fighting through the adversity. I’ll be here and try to keep leading this group.”