Category: Philadelphia 76ers Blog

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Carter scores 15 as Nets crush Philadelphia 76ers

The AP reports: Vince Carter scored 15 points and the Nets kept their playoff hopes alive for a couple more days by handing the Philadelphia 76ers their worst loss of the season, 96-67 Sunday night… The Nets (32-45) were pushed to the brink of elimination while their game was being contested when the Detroit Pistons (37-40) beat the Charlotte Bobcats 104-97. New Jersey and Detroit each have five games left. New Jersey will miss the postseason for the second straight year if it loses one or the Pistons win one… Sixth man Lou Williams had 14 points to lead the Sixers, who looked drained a day after beating Detroit to clinch a second straight playoff berth… Andre Iguodala and Andre Miller combined for 12 points on 4-of-17 shooting.

Philadelphia 76ers notes

*  With their win vs. Detroit yesterday, Philly clinched a spot in the Eastern Conference Playoffs… the Sixers would be the fifth seed if the playoffs started today… Philly was the seventh seed in 2007-08 and have not been higher than the seventh seed since being fourth in 2002-03.

*  The Sixers have won three straight and 10 of their past 14 games… Philly is 40-35 this season after being 13-20 at one point… the Sixers were 18-30 through the first 48 games last season but went 22-12 the rest of the way… in 2006-07, Philly was 17-36 entering All-Star break, but went 18-11 over the final 29 games.

*  Over the past 42 games (which is just over half a regular season), the Sixers have a winning percentage of .643 (27-15).

*  Under Head Coach Tony DiLeo, the Sixers are 19-8 at home after starting the season with a 5-7 mark (24-15 overall)… Philly went 22-19 at home in 2007-08 and has won at least half of its home games in 11 straight seasons (including 2008-09)… there are two home games remaining (4/10 vs. CLE and 4/14 vs. BOS).

*  Philly has 24 wins at home this season, surpassing their total of 22 in 2007-08… the Sixers have not won more than 25 home games since picking up 29 wins in 2000-01… Philly could finish with as many as 26 home wins this season.

*  The Sixers are 14-14 over their past 28 road games after starting the season 2-6 away from home (16-20 mark overall)… five of Philly’s final seven games are on the road… the Sixers would need to go undefeated over their remaining road schedule to finish above .500 on the away from home for the first time since the 2002-03 season.

*  Philly finished its five-game road trip from 3/17-3/23 with a 3-2 mark… the last time the Sixers played at least five consecutive road games and posted a winning record was an eight-game span from 12/22/04-1/7/05, in which they went 5-3.

*  The Sixers finished the month of March with a 9-6 mark… over the past three years, Philly has compiled a 29-16 (.644) mark in March… last April, the Sixers went 3-5… April is the only regular season month in which the franchise has a winning percentage lower than .500 (.497; 151-153).

*  The Sixers are five games over .500 for the first time since the end of the 2002-03 season (48-34 mark)… Philly must finish the season with at least a 2-5 mark to have a final record above .500 for the first time since 2004-05.

*  Philly is 6-11 in the second games of back-to-backs this season after going 13-9 in 2007-08… the Sixers are 13-5 in the first games of B2B’s this season after going 7-15 in 2007-08… tonight is the second part of a back-to-back for the Sixers… they have two B2B’s remaining (at CHI on 4/9 and vs. CLE on 4/10; vs. BOS on 4/14 and at CLE on 4/15).

*  The Sixers went 16-14 against teams from the Western Conference this season… the last time Philly had a winning record against teams from the West was 2005-06 (16-14 mark)… last season, the Sixers went 15-15 against the West and were one of just four Eastern Conference squads to go .500 or better vs. the West.

*  Philly is 29-11 when leading or tied through three quarters of play this season after going 30-6 in 2007-08… Philly is 11-24 when trailing at the start of the fourth this season after going 10-36 in 2007-08… the Sixers are 30-13 in games in which they led by 10+ points this season (30-8 in 2007-08).

*  The Sixers have lost 7 games by one or two points this season, including three buzzer beaters (Tony Parker at SA on 1/3, Dirk Nowitzki vs. DAL on 1/19, Devin Harris at NJ on 2/23) and four other game-winning shots in the final seconds (Rashard Lewis with 4.8 seconds left vs. ORL on 11/26, T.J. Ford with 3.7 seconds left vs. IND on 12/20, Brook Lopez with 16.8 second left vs. NJ on 1/31 and Ray Allen with 0.5 seconds left vs. BOS on 2/5).

*  Philly has won the past two games it has played that have been decided by 3 or fewer points in after starting the season 3-7 in those games… two of the past three wins have been by double-digits after just once just one of the previous 11 wins were by 10+ points.

*  The Sixers won in overtime at Portland on 3/23, marking just their second overtime game of the season (win at Chicago on 12/2)… Philly has yet to play an overtime game at home after having just one last season… the last time the Sixers went without an overtime game at home was in 1995-96… the last season in which Philly played fewer than three overtime games was 2001-02… the Sixers had just three OT games last season (1-2 mark).

*  In the 52 games under Head Coach Tony DiLeo, the Sixers have scored 100+ points 25 times (99.5 ppg; 5172 total) compared to six times the first 23 games of the season… Philly is 25-6 when scoring 100+ points this season (25-8 in 2007-08)… over the past 20 games, the Sixers are averaging 101.3 ppg (2026 total) after averaging 94.3 ppg the 13 games prior.

76ers clinch playoff spot with win over Pistons

The AP reports: Wanting to clinch a playoff berth at home, Philadelphia coach Tony DiLeo relied on Andre Iguodala and Andre Miller, and they came though for the 76ers in a 95-90 win over the Detroit Pistons on Saturday. Playing the entire second half, Iguodala scored 16 of his season-high 31 points, and Miller added a triple-double with 21 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds, and the 76ers advanced to the playoffs for the second straight season… Rodney Stuckey scored 23 points for Detroit, and Kwame Brown added a season-high 15 in the loss, which combined with Chicago’s win over New Jersey, put the Pistons a half-game behind the Bulls for the seventh spot in the Eastern Conference.

Iguodala leads 76ers past Bucks 105-95

The AP reports: Andre Iguodala scored 20 points, Lou Williams had 14 of his 21 in the second half, and Philadelphia rallied from a 13-point first-half deficit to defeat Milwaukee 105-95 on Thursday night. Andre Miller contributed 18 points and 11 assists for the Sixers (39-35), who won their second straight and vaulted past Miami into fifth place in the Eastern Conference playoff race. Marreese Speights had 14 points, Reggie Evans chipped in 13 and Samuel Dalembert added 10 rebounds for Philadelphia, which won its fifth in a row against the Bucks, including all three this season… Ramon Sessions led Milwaukee with his second straight stellar outing, getting 18 points, 10 assists and five rebounds a night after his first career triple-double against the Los Angeles Lakers… Richard Jefferson added 17 points and Charlie Bell contributed 14 for the Bucks (32-45), who have lost seven of eight.

Thaddeus Young out 2-3 weeks

Philadelphia 76ers forward Thaddeus Young had an MRI taken this morning of his right ankle, the results of which were examined by team Orthopedist and Medical Director Dr. Jack McPhilemy of Main Line Health.  Dr. McPhilemy reports that Young has a right ankle sprain and bone bruise.

Young is currently walking with the assistance of crutches and also wearing a removable air cast.

It is anticipated that Young will miss two to three weeks.

Additional updates on Young’s injury will be provided as they become available.

76ers overcome Smith, Hawks 98-85

The AP reports: The Philadelphia 76ers proved they could win without Thaddeus Young. They might have to keep proving it over their final nine regular-season games. Andre Iguodala scored 19 points, Andre Miller added 18 points and 10 assists, and the 76ers overcame a season-high 33 points from Josh Smith and the loss of Young in their 98-85 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday night. Marreese Speights contributed 16 and Willie Green had 15 for the Sixers (38-35), who climbed within a half-game of the Miami Heat for fifth place in the Eastern Conference playoff race… Flip Murray added 19 and Joe Johnson had 11 for the Hawks (43-32), who haven’t won a road game over a team currently in playoff position since a victory on Feb. 11 at Detroit. Still, Atlanta holds the No. 4 spot in the postseason.

Iverson returns, Pistons beat Sixers 101-97

The AP reports: Tayshaun Prince scored 21 points, Rodney Stuckey added 16 points and Allen Iverson returned from a back injury to help the Detroit Pistons beat the Philadelphia 76ers 101-97 on Sunday and gain ground in the Eastern Conference playoff race. Iverson, who missed 16 games, scored eight points in 22 minutes as Detroit pulled within 1 1/2 games of Philadelphia for sixth place in the conference. Philadelphia’s Samuel Dalembert left in the first quarter with a leg injury and didn’t return. Richard Hamilton had 14 points and seven assists for the Pistons, and Antonio McDyess scored 13. Andre Iguodala had 24 points and Thaddeus Young added 22 for the 76ers.

Diaw’s 24 points lead Charlotte past Philly

The AP reports: Desperate to remain in playoff contention, Boris Diaw and the Charlotte Bobcats came up big against the Philadelphia 76ers. Diaw scored 24 points and Ray Felton added 20 points for the Bobcats, who won 100-95 on Friday night and moved within 2 1/2 games of idle Detroit for the eighth playoff seed in the Eastern Conference. “We did a tremendous job in the first half,” Bobcats coach Larry Brown said. “The rebounding and shooting is what kept is in it. We did a great job on the boards. Winning on the road, against a quality team, is a real good win for us.” The Sixers, who have been outrebounded by 10 in four of the last 21 games, were led by Andre Iguodala with 25 points.

NBA rule change on too many players on court

The NBA Board of Governors voted to approve a playing rules change in regards to “too many players on the court”, which will take effect beginning Friday, March 27.

Under the playing rules change, when a “too many players on the court” violation is called, a technical foul will be assessed against the offending team and the non-offending team will have the option of either accepting or nullifying the game action that occurred during the violation.

Option 1 — Accept Game Action

The non-offending team can opt to ACCEPT all play that occurred during the violation, including any points scored, with no adjustment of the game clock.

Option 2 — Nullify Game Action

The non-offending team can opt to NULLIFY all play that occurred during the violation, other than any acts of unsportsmanlike conduct or flagrant fouls or any points scored from free throws as a result of such actions.

Under this option, following the technical foul, the game clock would be reset to the time when the ball was put into play with too many players on the court and, depending on how the ball was originally put into play, play would resume in accordance with the following:

1) If the original play commenced with a throw-in, then the ball would be returned to the original throw-in spot and play commenced with a throw-in.

2) If the original play commenced with a missed free-throw attempt where the ball remained in play, then play would be commenced with a jump ball held at center court between any two players who were on the floor at the time play was suspended due to the violation.

3) If the original play commenced with a jump ball, then play would be commenced with a jump ball held at the original jump-ball spot between the same two players who participated in the original jump ball.