Sixers Defeat (Shorthanded) NBA’s Best

By Sean Kennedy (@PhillyFastBreak)

Philadelphia 92, Atlanta 84 – Box Score

It’s only fitting that this weekend was the beginning of Daylight Saving Time, because it’s easier to believe in the arbitrary nature of moving time forward one hour than the Sixers beating the best team in the NBA, a Hawks group that handily beat the healthy LeBron-led Cavaliers one night before. In actuality, the Sixers benefited from Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer going full-Popovich and resting not one, not two, but three of his starters against Philadelphia Saturday night. With the Hawks in a tight battle with the Warriors for the best record in the league, Budenholzer may come to regret not having Kyle Korver, Paul Millsap, or heck, even just DeMarre Carroll out on the court Saturday night.

Still, Atlanta did have 2 All-Stars remaining in the lineup (a full 2 more than the Sixers) and a couple minutes into the second quarter, the Sixers found themselves down 16 points. Al Horford had worked Nerlens Noel down on the block to the tune of 8 first-quarter points and tallied 3 blocks in the game’s first 6 minutes, while Jeff Teague recorded 7 points and 3 assists in the frame. The Sixers offense was looking completely lifeless, that is, until Hollis Thompson made like Michael B. Jordan and yelled ‘Flame on!’ Thompson drained 3 threes in the second quarter alone, helping the Sixers cut the deficit to a manageable 6 points heading into the locker room. Holliswood was the catalyst for the team’s offense all game, ending the night hitting 5 of 7 threes for a game-high 19 points, while also chipping in 9 rebounds.

With Luc Mbah a Moute helping out in the scoring department (also dropping 19 points), the Sixers were able to take control of the game late thanks to the exceptional defensive play of Nerlens Noel. Noel finished the game with 11 points, 17 rebounds, and 5 steals, the second-straight night he put himself in elite company with his stat line.

.@NerlensNoel3‘s the first rookie since @SHAQ & the first Sixer since Charles Barkley to match this line in a game. pic.twitter.com/Z6Yct5Seza

— Philadelphia 76ers (@Sixers) March 8, 2015

//platform.twitter.com/widgets.jsThe Wells Fargo Center crowd was loving Noel’s hard-nosed energy on the defensive end. There was one sequence where he poked the ball away from Horford on the perimeter, dove on the floor for the loose ball, and got fouled in the process. You would have thought it was Andre Iguodala going for the game-winning free throws in the Chicago playoff series with the ovation Noel got as he stepped to the line. His effort against the Hawks was another in a long string of incredible efforts from the big man defensively.

With that steal, Nerlens Noel has 4+ steals in each of last 3 games. Only 8 players have had 4+ sts in 3 straight games in past 5 seasons.

— Derek Bodner (@DerekBodnerNBA) March 8, 2015

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More and more, I’m finding myself in the ‘Noel should be untouchable’ camp, offensive shortcomings or not. His combination of rim protection and quick hands is just such a overwhelmingly devastating package with which the opposition has to contend.

The win was exciting to watch and the guys certainly deserved to come out on top for once with the effort they continue to show each week. But I know some of you are worried about draft implications. Fortunately, although the Knicks ‘picked up’ a game on the Sixers with their loss Saturday, Philadlephia caught a break with the Wolves topping Portland, so they didn’t pass Minnesota in the standings. Other good results included Miami prevailing in overtime (we have to start worrying about the Heat falling back into the top 10) and Washington losing to Milwaukee (good for the OKC pick). The Sixers have a few days off to savor this victory before taking on the Bulls Wednesday night.