Sixers lose to lowly Timberwolves, 102-96, in Minneapolis.
November 20, 2008
It’s been three long weeks since the Minnesota Timberwolves last won a basketball game.
“It seems like 1,000 years,” forward Craig Smith said.
Not anymore, thanks to Smith’s superb effort off the bench and Al Jefferson’s refusal to let his Timberwolves collapse in the fourth quarter again.
Jefferson scored six of his 25 points in the final 3½ minutes to lift Minnesota to a 102-96 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday night, snapping an eight-game losing streak.
“I just had to take over,” Jefferson said. “They just feed off me. I don’t feel like I have to take every shot in crunch time, but the ball should go through me.”
Elton Brand had 19 points and 13 rebounds for Philadelphia, which committed 16 turnovers and missed eight free throws while losing for the first time in four games.
“They were desperate,” 76ers sixth man Willie Green said. “They had a sense of urgency all game long. They wanted it more than us. It was obvious.”
Six of Minnesota’s defeats came by six points or fewer and with the Timberwolves ahead at some point in the fourth quarter. It looked to be going that way again against Philadelphia when Andre Iguodala’s three-point play cut an 11-point lead to 92-91.
But Jefferson bulled his way to the basket on three straight occasions when the Wolves absolutely needed a bucket, helping the team avoid a losing streak that would have been longer than any in last year’s miserable 22-60 season.
Smith scored a season-high 21 points and matched a career best with five assists, and Mike Miller had 10 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for the Wolves, who won for the first time since the season opener against Sacramento.
Andre Miller’s 22-foot jumper cut it to 95-94, but Mike Miller’s long 3-pointer at the other end put the game away with 30 seconds to go.
“I told the team that the ice is off the lake,” coach Randy Wittman said. “It’s not going to freeze anymore. We broke the ice tonight and that’s got to help them.”
So many times during their eight-game skid the Wolves built a formidable lead out of halftime, only to let their opponent chip away at it to a manageable deficit going into the fourth.
Once there, the Wolves would fall apart down the stretch. In the last five minutes of their previous nine games, they shot less than 32 percent from the field and were outscored 133-93.
This time, Minnesota gave itself some more breathing room heading into that pesky final period.
The burly Smith harkened back to his days on the California blacktop when he crossed over Reggie Evans at the top of the key and got to the basket to draw a foul. His free throw capped a 9-2 run that helped Minnesota take a 76-65 lead into the fourth.
It still ended up being a nail-biter, but Jefferson’s twisting layup with 2:33 to go set the tone for a team that had yet to close out a close game this season. He pounded his chest as he headed back up the court, sending a message that this time was going to be different.
“When you have a player scoring the way Al Jefferson was scoring, it puts a lot of pressure on you,” Sixers coach Maurice Cheeks said. “Get ready to go double. Who are you going to go double? Who are you going to rotate to?
“Give Al Jefferson credit. He got the ball to Mike Miller at the right time and he made the shot,” he added.
Hookscenter.com wire report.
2008 NBA regular season game preview - Sixers @ T-Wolves.
November 19, 2008
The Philadelphia 76ers are starting to string some wins together. The Minnesota Timberwolves would like just one.
Philadelphia goes for its fourth straight victory on Wednesday when it visits a Timberwolves club that hasn’t won since opening night.
After rallying from 26 down in their 94-92 win at Indiana on Friday, the 76ers (5-5) outscored Oklahoma City by 21 in the second half on Saturday in a 110-85 victory.
“We got some energy after halftime and built on it,” said Andre Iguodala, who had 15 points, five rebounds and five assists Saturday. “It was a good win for us.”
Iguodala is averaging 14.3 points, 8.0 rebounds and 5.7 assists during the winning streak.
All 12 Philadelphia players scored against Oklahoma City, led by Thaddeus Young’s 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting. In his last two games, Young has shot 63.6 percent and averaged 24.0 points and 7.0 rebounds. On Feb. 19, Young hit all five shots and scored 12 in a 104-88 loss at Minnesota.
Philadelphia is shooting 45.4 percent from the floor during its streak, up from 37.9 during a three-game slide from Nov. 5-11. In their last seven visits to Minnesota - six losses - the 76ers have shot 40.2 percent and averaged just 89.4 points.
The Sixers, the NBA’s leading rebounding team with 49.2 per game, have outrebounded their last three opponents by 7.0 a contest, including a 58-45 edge over the Thunder. Samuel Dalembert had 16 boards and scored 13 Saturday, while Elton Brand - ninth in the NBA with 10.3 rebounds per game - had 15 points.
Dalembert posted 12.0 points and 10.0 rebounds per game in two matchups with Minnesota in 2007-08, while Brand has four double-doubles in his last five games against the Wolves (1-8), averaging 20.0 points and 10.4 rebounds.
In addition to getting outrebounded in six of its past eight games, Minnesota ranks in the bottom third in the league in field goal shooting at 43.0 percent. In their 90-84 loss at Denver on Sunday, the Timberwolves held the Nuggets to 33.7 percent shooting but went only 3-of-12 from the floor in the final six minutes.
“It’s tough. It’s just tough,” Minnesota coach Randy Wittman said. “We have to make sure we give ourselves a chance to win the games at the end. We’ve done that. We can’t lose focus of our play through three-and-a-half quarters.”
The Timberwolves have lost eight in a row by an average of only 5.9 points.
“We’ve been close almost every night,” said rookie Kevin Love, who came off the bench Sunday following four straight starts. “We’ve had five losses of under six points. It is tough. It’s time to get a win.”
Al Jefferson will likely have to play a big role for the Wolves to post a victory. He had 20 points and 14 rebounds against the Nuggets, and is averaging a career-best 22.3 points with 10.6 rebounds. Jefferson is one of only three players, along with Toronto’s Chris Bosh and San Antonio’s Tim Duncan, ranked in the top 11 in both categories.
Jefferson averaged 20.5 points and 12.5 rebounds as these teams split two meetings in 2007-08.
Hookscenter.com wire report.
Sixers rout Thunder in Oklahoma City’s 1st visit to Philly, 110-85.
November 16, 2008
The Philadelphia 76ers expended quite a bit of energy in overcoming a 26-point deficit in their victory at Indiana.
Yet they still had plenty of pep one night later.
Thaddeus Young scored 23 points, Elton Brand and Andre Iguodala added 15 apiece, and the 76ers cruised past the struggling Oklahoma City Thunder, 110-85 on Saturday.
“We got some energy after halftime and built on it,” Iguodala said. “It was a good win for us.”
Samuel Dalembert contributed 13 points and 16 rebounds for the Sixers, who won their third straight game to even their record at 5-5.
One night after staging a furious rally to win 94-92 at Indiana, Philadelphia had little trouble dispatching of the Thunder. Young shot 10-of-15 from the field and all 12 Sixers players scored.
“That’s the NBA,” Brand said. “Coming off an emotional win where we expended a lot of energy, we had to play with intensity.”
Jeff Green scored 21 points and Kevin Durant added 13 for Oklahoma City, which fell to 1-9 and dropped its seventh in a row. Durant, who was the Rookie of the Year last season, shot just 6-of-18. Russell Westbrook also had 13 points and Johan Petro grabbed 12 rebounds.
The Thunder are 0-5 on the road after finishing 7-34 last season for Seattle before relocating. It was their worst loss of the season, surpassing a 109-92 home defeat against Orlando last Wednesday.
“We played like a team playing its fifth game in seven nights,” Thunder coach P.J. Carlesimo said. “We dug a hole, then lost our intensity.”
The Sixers went on a 23-8 run in the third quarter and led 69-50 on a tip by Dalembert with 4:36 remaining. Philadelphia’s lead swelled to as many as 27.
“I thought our defense was a major part of it,” Sixers coach Maurice Cheeks said.
Despite pockets of empty seats at the Wachovia Center — announced attendance was 13,385 — the fans showed their appreciation as the Sixers continued building their huge lead.
“I thought our ball movement was good,” Iguodala said. “Everyone got involved.”
The Sixers led 46-42 at halftime, then got a number of easy baskets and were never threatened in the second half. Oklahoma City committed 19 turnovers en route to its ninth loss in 10 games.
“There’s been too many of those nights this year, about nine of them,” Thunder forward Nick Collison said.
Hookscenter.com wire report.
Thunder visit 76ers as Oklahoma City visits Philly for 1st time - preview.
November 15, 2008
The Philadelphia 76ers are hoping their first back-to-back victories of the season are a sign they’re ready to turn around their slow start.
For the Oklahoma City Thunder, however, any major improvement may be still be far off.
Philadelphia will return home to try for its third straight win Saturday against the Thunder, who’ve lost six in a row and haven’t yet won a road game this season.
After a surprisingly tough start for a team that was brimming with optimism from the addition Elton Brand in the offseason, the Sixers (4-5) have won both of their last two games on the road.
While they displayed a balanced offense in Wednesday’s 106-96 win at Toronto, they had to come back from a 25-point deficit after the first quarter to earn a 94-92 win over Indiana on Friday. Thaddeus Young had 25 points and 10 rebounds while Andre Miller added 19 points, including the go-ahead basket late in the fourth quarter.
“I told them to keep fighting,” Philadelphia coach Maurice Cheeks said. “We just hung in there, we didn’t stop.”
Among the Sixers’ difficult early losses was a 95-88 loss to Atlanta in which they blew a 23-point lead.
“It gave us confidence to know, ‘Hey, we can do it to somebody else,’” Brand said.
Against the Pacers, Brand was 4-of-17 from the field while Andre Iguodala went 2-of-12, and Philadelphia shot 37 percent as a team.
Brand is shooting 45 percent this season - more than five percent below his career average - as he adjusts to his new teammates. Iguodala is also off to a tough start, shooting 36 percent and averaging 12.1 points after scoring 19.9 last season.
Still, the Sixers now have an opportunity to build a winning streak, with their next three games against Oklahoma City, Minnesota and the Los Angeles Clippers - a trio of one-win teams.
The lone victory for the Thunder (1-8) came at home against the Timberwolves on Nov. 2, and they’ve lost six straight since. They’re also 0-4 on the road after going 7-34 away from Seattle last season before the team relocated.
A sputtering offense has been the problem for most of the season, as they averaged 88.5 points and shot 40 percent in their first eight games. But even though they finally scored 100 points for the first time this season on Friday night, they lost 116-106 at New York.
Kevin Durant had 23 points for Oklahoma City in his return to the lineup after a one-game absence due to an ankle problem, but the Thunder fell behind 68-44 at halftime and, unlike Philadelphia, couldn’t complete the comeback on the road.
“You’ve got to start off well. Tonight they jumped on top of us early,” Durant said. “In this league, once you are down 30, you can’t come back and win a game tired.”
The last time the teams met, the Sixers jumped out to a double-digit lead in the first quarter on March 7 at home against Seattle en route to a 117-83 drubbing of the SuperSonics. Philadelphia has won four straight and six of seven overall against the Thunder franchise.
Sixers erase 26 point deficit in win over the Pacers in Indy.
November 15, 2008
Philadelphia 76ers coach Maurice Cheeks gave his team a simple yet effective message after the first quarter against Indiana.
His players responded Friday night, overcoming a 26-point deficit to beat the Pacers 94-92.
“I told them to keep fighting,” Cheeks said following a dismal first quarter, which ended with the Pacers ahead 38-13. “We just hung in there, we didn’t stop.”
The 76ers took their coach’s words to heart, tying it at 90 on Andre Iguodala’s free throw with 3:14 left in the fourth quarter. They gained their first lead, 92-90, on Andre Miller’s layup.
“It’s hard to hold a lead like that because a team is going to fight,” said Miller, who finished with 19 points.
Thaddeus Young’s two free throws capped a 9-0 run by the 76ers and gave them a 94-90 advantage with 1:31 left. Danny Granger’s jumper made it 94-92 and, following a missed shot by Elton Brand, the Pacers had a chance to tie it or take the lead. However, Marquis Daniels missed a wide open 3-pointer with time winding down.
“It was a great comeback by Philadelphia,” Indiana coach Jim O’Brien said. “Sometimes you get too big a lead early in the game — and the NBA is a game of momentum shifts.”
Young had 25 points and 10 rebounds, Brand added 14 points and 15 rebounds, and Iguodala finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Sixers (4-5), which snapped a three-game losing streak against the Pacers.
The 76ers have been on both sides of losing a big lead. They gave up a 23-point advantage to Atlanta in a 95-88 defeat on Nov. 1.
“Atlanta did that to us early in the season, so it gave us confidence to know, ‘Hey, we can do it to somebody else,”‘ Brand said.
Granger had 18 points, Daniels finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds, and T.J. Ford added 12 points and seven assists for Indiana (4-4). The Pacers tried to make sense of the loss.
“We let our guard down and quit executing what got us the lead,” said Pacers center Jeff Foster, who finished with 10 points and 11 rebounds. “To their credit, they stayed aggressive and never gave up.”
The Pacers jumped out to a 9-0 lead before Philadelphia got on the scoreboard on Samuel Dalembert’s dunk nearly 4 minutes into the game. The 76ers started 0-of-7 from the field and finished the first quarter 5-of-21.
Indiana, which shot 59 percent and hit four of eight 3-point attempts, took a 38-13 lead on Jarrett Jack’s layup to end the first period. The Pacers tied a season high for points in a quarter, while the 76ers tied a season low.
After falling behind by 26 points to begin the second quarter, Philadelphia slowly chipped away at the deficit, eventually getting to 57-49 on Brand’s free throw late in the first half. Young had 12 points in the period.
“We missed a lot of shots in the first quarter, but we knew the next three quarters we had to dig in and keep fighting,” Young said. “We were just so happy to get out of here with a win.”
Hookscenter.com wire report.
Sixers get first road win of 2008 in Toronto, 106-96.
November 13, 2008
Relaxed and reinvigorated by a pregame talk, the Philadelphia 76ers put together their best performance of the season.
Elton Brand scored a season-high 25 points, Andre Miller and Andre Iguodala each had 18, and the Philadelphia 76ers snapped a three-game losing streak by beating the Toronto Raptors 106-96 on Wednesday night.
“Just for team morale and team psyche, it’s a big win for us, and on the road,” Brand said.
Willie Green scored 17 points and Marreese Speights had 12 for the 76ers, who won for the first time in four tries away from home.
Iguodala, who also had 10 assists and nine rebounds, said the 76ers put aside the issues that had been clouding their minds through the first seven games of the season.
“We haven’t really been having fun,” Iguodala said. “We’ve just been thinking ‘How can we play with each other, how can we win? How can we not make mistakes?’ That’s when you make mistakes, when you start thinking a little bit too much. Tonight we were a little bit more free, we were shooting the ball with more confidence.”
The 76ers, who had been held below 90 points in each of their past three games, passed that barrier on a jumper by Brand with 7:27 left in the fourth, putting them up 91-80.
Rather than worrying about the recent lack of scoring, 76ers coach Maurice Cheeks used the locker room discussion to urge his players to relax and concentrate their energy on defense.
“When you do that, you’re not putting that much pressure on the offense,” Cheeks said. “That’s what’s happened the last few games. We’ve put so much pressure on our offense and not enough pressure on our defense.
“I really believe the way we played at the defensive end of the floor was the difference in the game.”
Brand, who had scored only 31 total points in Philadelphia’s previous three games, eclipsed his previous high of 24, set in an Oct. 31 victory against New York.
“I got in a rhythm, got my shots,” Brand said. “The coaching staff has been working tirelessly to make sure that I’m integrated into the team and into the game. They told me, ‘Don’t try to fit in, just go out there and play.’ That’s what happened tonight.”
Iguodala said the addition of Brand gives the 76ers hope that no losing streak will ever last too long.
“Last year we’d go through streaks where we would lose eight or nine in a row and kind of didn’t know how to get out of it,” Iguodala said. “We would look at the schedule and say ‘All right, what’s the next game we can win?’ We’ve got good veteran guys now and it’s like the next game, we can win, no matter what.”
Chris Bosh had 30 points and 12 rebounds, but Toronto still lost for the fourth time in five games after starting the season 3-0. Jermaine O’Neal added 19 points and 11 rebounds, and reserve Andrea Bargnani scored 15 for the Raptors.
“We’re disappointed, we had a lot of breakdowns,” Toronto coach Sam Mitchell said. “We got shots and didn’t make them. Our defense wasn’t good. Offensively we weren’t very good.”
Philadelphia led 26-13 after one quarter before 11 points from Bargnani and six consecutive points by Bosh helped Toronto close the gap to 46-45 with 1:20 left in the second. But a tip-in by Speights and a 3-pointer from Green gave the 76ers a 51-45 edge at the half.
“We cut the lead, we just didn’t come up with the big stops,” O’Neal said.
Toronto guard Jose Calderon went to the locker room for treatment on a tight right hamstring after clutching at his leg at the end of the first. Calderon played 13 more minutes in the second and third quarters before leaving the game for good with 4:42 remaining in the third.
Mitchell wasn’t sure whether Calderon would be healthy in time for Toronto’s next game, Sunday at home to Miami.
“I haven’t had a chance to talk to the trainer,” Mitchell said. “He tweaked his hamstring and tried to play in the second half.”
Hookscenter.com wire report.
Allen Iverson drops 30 in first win as a Detroit Piston.
November 12, 2008
For a veteran like Allen Iverson, a win in November against a lottery team rarely registers as important. After losing his first two games with his new team, that wasn’t the case with this victory.
Iverson had 30 points, nine assists and provided a spark for Detroit after a slow start, winning his first game since joining the Pistons, 100-92 over the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday night.
“It was a huge lift off of me,” Iverson said. “I knew it would happen. You think every game you go out and play it’s going to happen. It feels good. I wanted to get the monkey off my back. I’m just excited that I got my first win and I can now try to get a lot more.”
Tayshaun Prince added 26 points and 11 rebounds for the Pistons, who had lost their first two games since acquiring Iverson from Denver last week for All-Star point guard Chauncey Billups, key reserve Antonio McDyess and Cheikh Samb.
After falling behind by 15 points early in the opener of a four-game West Coast road trip, the Pistons fought back and beat the short-handed Kings for their first win with the former league MVP.
After the slow start for the Pistons, Iverson scored eight points and assisted on a three-point play by Kwame Brown in the first three minutes of the second quarter, carrying his new team like he had his old ones in Denver and Philadelphia for so long.
“I feel like in the first couple of games I wasn’t as aggressive as they wanted me to be,” he said. “It’s hard coming into a situation where guys have been established, making the Eastern Conference finals six years in a row and then you come in as a major part. You just want to do the right thing. It’s going to take a while, but I’m willing to take the challenge.”
Sacramento played without its leading scorer, Kevin Martin, who is out at least a week after spraining his left ankle in a victory over Golden State on Sunday. With Martin out, John Salmons moved from small forward to shooting guard and rookie Jason Thompson got his first start, giving the Kings three players 6-foot-11 or taller in the starting lineup.
But Sacramento was unable to capitalize on the size advantage, with coach Reggie Theus pleading in vain at times with his big guys to “take the little guy down” low.
The Kings still led 77-75 heading into the fourth quarter but that’s where they really missed Martin, who was averaging 22.4 points before the injury. Without their top scoring threat, the Kings went nearly 5 minutes without a point midway through the fourth and struggled to get good looks at the basket.
“It’s a learning experience,” Theus said. “You’ve got to learn how to win games. You’ve got to learn how to win down the stretch. We had six turnovers in the last five minutes of the game and none of them were caused by the other team. It was just carelessness on our part.”
Theus was also upset about the foul shooting disparity, calling it “ridiculous” that a road team got 36 fouls shots to just 17 for the Kings.
Iverson hit a big 3-pointer early in the quarter but the Pistons could not pull away. With the lead at two with under 2 minutes left, Thompson fouled Prince on a jump shot and he made both free throws to make it 94-90.
After a turnover by Beno Udrih at the other end, Richard Hamilton scored on a pretty give-and-go to make it a six-point game.
Spencer Hawes scored 19 points and Udrih added 18 for the Kings, who had won the first three games on their four-game homestand after starting the season 0-4 on the road.
“I really feel like we outplayed them for 42 minutes,” Theus said. “They are a veteran team and know how to win games down the stretch.”
The Kings scored 14 straight points early in the first quarter, holding Detroit scoreless for more than 5 minutes. The Pistons tightened up defensively and whittled away at the lead in the second quarter, going into the half tied at 50.
“I just want the guys to concentrate on the defensive end,” coach Michael Curry said. “Because if we defend, we’re going to find ways to score the basketball. We’re just too talented not to score the basketball.”
Hamilton, who failed to make a basket for just the second time in 580 career starts Sunday against Boston, missed his first seven shots. He finally broke an 0-for-16 drought with a 3-pointer late in the first quarter but Detroit still trailed 31-18 after one. Hamilton finished with 17 points on 4-for-16 shooting.
Hookscenter.com wire report.
Sixers drop to 2-5 in 2008 after home loss to Jazz.
November 12, 2008
The Utah Jazz played really well without star point guard Deron Williams, winning five of their first six games.
They’re thrilled to have him back.
Williams played for the first time this season to lead the Jazz past the Philadelphia 76ers 93-80 on Tuesday night. He had seven points and nine assists after missing the first six games because of a sprained left ankle he suffered in a preseason game Oct. 18 against Chicago.
Williams averaged a double-double last season — 18.8 points and 10.5 assists — and was part of the United States’ gold medal-winning men’s basketball team at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
“I didn’t know what was going to happen,” Utah coach Jerry Sloan said. “It was the first time he’s played in six games. We thought he’d play five minutes or so but he played longer. It kind of depends on him how much he can play.”
Williams played 31 minutes and shot 1-of-8 from the field.
“Every day, I’ve gotten a lot stronger,” Williams said of being able to return.
Carlos Boozer led Utah with 19 points and 16 rebounds. Andrei Kirilenko and Ronnie Brewerr added 16 points apiece for the Jazz, who improved to 6-1 and lead the Northwest Division. Brewer scored all of his point in the fourth quarter after missing his first nine shots.
“At halftime, I was really down on myself,” Brewer said. “My teammates told me to hang tough and keep my head up.”
Andre Miller scored 25 points, Andre Iguodala had 15 points and 10 rebounds and Elton Brand added 13 for the reeling Sixers, who lost their third in a row and fell to 2-5.
“It’s a disappointing start,” Brand said. “We have to fight through it.”
Samuel Dalembert and Thaddeus Young each added 11 rebounds for the 76ers, who shot just 38 percent from the field.
“We’ve just got to find ways to keep working hard and turn this around,” Iguodala said.
The Jazz scored 13 of the first 15 points in the fourth quarter — nine by Brewer — to take a 76-69 lead. His 3-pointer with 4:11 remaining extended Utah’s lead to 83-73 and sealed the win.
Philadelphia never got closer than five the rest of the way.
“I just think our offense is out of sync,” Sixers coach Maurice Cheeks said.
The Sixers trailed by as many as 13 points in the third quarter. Facing a 57-45 deficit, Philadelphia went on a 16-2 run to take a 61-59 advantage on a layup by Miller, who scored 10 points during that stretch. The Sixers led 67-63 at the end of the third.
Utah jumped out to a 49-37 lead at halftime thanks in large part to Boozer’s 15 points and 10 rebounds as well as 11 Philadelphia turnovers.
The Jazz played without All-Star forward Mehmet Okur, who returned to his home country of Turkey on Monday because of an illness in the family. Okur is averaging 15.5 points per game, second on the Jazz.
Hookscenter.com wire report.
Sixers remain winless on road in 2008 with loss to Magic in Orlando.
November 8, 2008
Jameer Nelson and the Orlando Magic showed just how deep they are with star center Dwight Howard hampered by foul trouble Thursday night.
Nelson had a season-high 16 points and nine assists, Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis scored 20 points apiece and the Magic beat the Philadelphia 76ers 98-88 on Thursday night.
“He was in attack mode all night,” Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said of Nelson. “He made good plays on pick-and-rolls and that was key. That was the best game he’s played all year.”
With Howard limited to only four minutes in the first half, the Magic got strong performances from Tony Battie and Lewis, who picked up the rebounding slack as Orlando won its third straight game.
Battie, who had only nine points in his previous four games, got a pep talk from general manager Otis Smith after the morning shootaround. He finished with eight points and six rebounds in 22 minutes against Philadelphia, taking care of some of the dirty work with Howard on the sideline.
“Otis kind of pulled my coattail and gave me some words of confidence and told me to keep working and I think I got my time in today,” said Battie, who missed all of last season with a shoulder injury and much of the preseason with a broken finger.
Thaddeus Young scored 19 points for Philadelphia, which placed four players in double figures. The Sixers cut a 23-point deficit to six in the fourth quarter but couldn’t draw closer.
Howard was called for two fouls in the first 2 minutes and was replaced by Battie, who had six points in the first quarter as the Magic built a 30-16 lead. Howard started the second quarter but quickly picked up his third foul and was taken out of the game.
“At times in the first half without Dwight, we played the game extremely well,” Van Gundy said. “Tony gave us a huge lift.”
Joked Battie, the only Magic big man to see significant time off the bench this season: “Selfishly speaking, sometimes you look up there and say, ‘I hope he’s in foul trouble more often.”‘
With Howard out, the Sixers were able to control the boards, a necessary advantage because of their poor shooting. Philadelphia, which made only 38 percent of its shots in Wednesday’s 106-83 loss at Miami, shot 35 percent in the first half and trailed 54-43 at halftime.
“It’s not like when he goes out nobody knows how to play,” Sixers coach Maurice Cheeks said.
Howard stayed out of foul trouble in the third and the Magic opened up a 23-point lead. Orlando, which normally has Nelson and Turkoglu work the pick-and-roll late in games, went to Nelson and Howard instead. Philadelphia fouled Howard repeatedly, but he hit only two of eight free throws down the stretch as the Sixers stayed close.
Howard scored seven of his 14 points in the fourth. He also had eight rebounds and blocked three shots in the game.
After committing 26 turnovers against Miami, Philadelphia was more careful against the Magic and finished with only 14 turnovers. The Sixers outrebounded the Magic 54-46 but shot only 38 percent.
Philadelphia’s Elton Brand, who had a double-double in four of the first five games, had 12 rebounds but scored six points. Samuel Dalembert had 10 points, 14 rebounds and three blocked shots, and Andre Iguodala finished with 16 points, 11 boards and eight assists.
Orlando effectively double-teamed Brand, jumping him when he caught the ball and not at the first dribble, as most teams have done.
“We just have to move the ball and make them pay,” Brand said. “Once we start making shots then they’ll have to pick their poison.”
Hookscenter.com wire report.
2008 NBA regular season game preview - Sixers vs Magic.
November 6, 2008
Turning the ball over is a sure-fire way of guaranteeing failure in the NBA.
While it’s way too early to count out the Orlando Magic or Philadelphia 76ers this season, the frequency in which they’re giving up extra possessions is leading them in that direction.
Both teams hope to bounce back from sloppy performances when they meet Thursday night in Orlando.
Despite nearly squandering a 17-point, third-quarter lead and matching a season high with 19 turnovers, Orlando (2-2) won its second straight on Monday - 96-93 over Chicago.
Orlando coach Stan Van Gundy was critical of the Magic’s lack of execution in the fourth quarter, when they had four turnovers and were an Andres Nocioni 3-pointer away from being forced into overtime.
“I guess we have to find somebody else to go to who will not turn the ball over,” Van Gundy said of Hedo Turkoglu and Jameer Nelson, who each had four turnovers.
After posting a career-best 2.72 assists-turnover ratio in 2007-08, Nelson has nearly as many turnovers (11) as assists (14) this season.
Turkoglu is averaging 3.3 turnovers and shooting just 35.7 percent from the field, including 27.8 percent from 3-point range. He could use another game like Feb. 22, when he scored 31 points and set a career high with seven 3-pointers in Orlando’s 115-99 win against the 76ers.
“His conditioning’s not great,” Van Gundy said. “When he gets a little tired he doesn’t want to do anything except jack up a jump shot.”
Conditioning never seems to be an issue for Dwight Howard, who posted his fourth straight double-double on Monday with 22 points and 15 rebounds. He had just two points and one board in the fourth.
In eight career home games against Philadelphia, Howard is averaging 19.3 points and 13.4 rebounds while the Magic have gone 6-2.
Rashard Lewis finished with 21 points and 11 rebounds against Chicago, and hit three free throws in the final 23 seconds to secure the win.
While Orlando is turning the ball over 16.5 times per game, the 76ers give it away 19.2 times per contest. In Wednesday’s 106-83 loss at Miami, Philadelphia (2-3) committed a season-high 26 turnovers, 17 in the opening 24 minutes.
“In the first half we turned the ball over every chance we got,” 76ers coach Maurice Cheeks. “We didn’t make shots, we turned the ball over and they got a lot of layups.”
Miami held a 14-0 advantage in points off turnovers in the first half en route to a 21-point lead.
Thaddeus Young led Philadelphia with 19 points, but committed five turnovers, while Elton Brand’s fourth double-double of the season - 12 points and 12 rebounds - was accompanied by his third four-turnover game.
Philadelphia lost three of four to the Magic last season, including both meetings in Orlando. The 76ers’ last road win in the series was a 105-103 decision on Nov. 3, 2006, behind 39 points and 10 assists from Allen Iverson.
Hookscenter.com wire report.