On a night when many fans in attendance likely came to the arena just to receive an Iverson bobblehead, they got more than they bargained for: another Sixers win, some exciting fourth quarter action, free big macs, and yes, the bobblehead. It was not a dominating effort throughout by the Sixers against the team with the worst record in the NBA, but Philadelphia did just enough down the stretch to earn a 100-92 victory against Charlotte. After the game was tied 82-82, Jrue Holiday finally snapped out of his game-long scoring funk, scoring 9 of his 14 points in the final six minutes, including a huge dunk between two Bobcats defenders. With Holiday leading the way in the closing moments, the Sixers finally strung some stops together to pull away from a feisty Charlotte team that refused to go away.
The Bobcats shot 63.6% in the first quarter to jump out to an early lead, combining unsustainable shooting on long jumpers with an attacking mentality, tallying 20 points in the paint in the opening frame. After hitting the rookie wall, Michael Kidd-Gilcrist played his best game in months, scoring 11 points in the first on 5-6 shooting, finishing with a team-high 21 points. Damien Wilkins initially kept the Sixers within striking distance, recording 9 points on 4-5 shooting in the game’s first 8 minutes.
In the second period, Charlotte’s outside shots stopped falling and the Sixers did a better job protecting the paint, while continuing to probe the porous Bobcats defense themselves. As usual, the energy of Thad Young overwhelmed an opponent, as he ended the half with 13 points on 6-7 shooting and 8 rebounds. The Sixers as a team did an excellent job of moving the ball around and finding the open man, as 17 of their 20 made field goals in the half were assisted. A nine-point deficit became a three-point halftime lead.
Coming out of the locker room, Evan Turner had a huge quarter, scoring 13 points in the third quarter for the second straight game. Turner’s mid-range jumper was falling as he buoyed a Sixers offense that became a little stagnant in the second half; he finished the game with a team-high 22 points and 7 rebounds.
Following Holiday’s late surge for the victory, the Sixers find themselves having won three straight and 7 of their past 11 games. Their recent success makes that 12 out of 13-game losing streak a month ago look that much worse. If Philadelphia had just played .500 ball during that stretch, they would find themselves in good playoff position given Boston and Milwaukee’s recent struggles. Unfortunately, it did happen and Sixers fans will just have to take solace in the fact that the team has enough character to pull things together and play some good basketball as the season winds down to an end. Philadelphia will next hit the road again, completing a home-and-home with Charlotte Wednesday night, before facing three Eastern Conference playoff teams in Atlanta, Miami, and Brooklyn.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
