After collapsing in the closing minutes against Denver Thursday night, the Sixers look to bounce back from that heart-breaking defeat in Sacramento. Philadelphia will not be expected to win many of the games down this final stretch of the season that sees them play 12 of 16 games on the road. However, with the Sixers on two days rest, a game against a Kings team which played in Denver the night before might be the rare exception.
The Sixers won the teams’ first match-up at the Wells Fargo Center in February, 89-80. Thad Young had a big game for Philadelphia with a team-high 23 points and 15 rebounds (including 5 offensive boards). That low-scoring contest was uncharacteristic of a standard Kings game as Sacramento is the second-worst defensive team in the league this season. Consistent effort on that end has been a huge problem for a young Kings team; opponents have the third-best effective field goal percentage against them, in addition to securing the second-highest percentage of available offensive rebounds. Allowing your opponent makeable shots and giving them second chances when they do happen to miss is a sure-fire way to a 25-44 record, even if you have some intriguing offensive talent.
However, the Kings have played much better since losing to Miami in double overtime a few weeks back, going 6-6 since then (with tonight’s Denver result still pending). The Kings have gone from horrific to merely bad on the defensive end during that stretch (approximately 105.7 points allowed per 100 possessions as opposed to 108.4) so maybe Coach Keith Smart’s message is starting to get through. The Kings also pulled off a trade deadline deal that was widely derided in the analyst community, trading Thomas Robinson, Francisco Garcia, and Tyler Honeycutt away for Patrick Patterson, Toney Douglas, and Cole Aldrich. Although it still seems awful to give up on the 5th overall pick after only half a season in the short term, Patterson has given them a boost, averaging 15.0 points and 5.8 rebounds over the last four games since earning extending minutes.
When he’s not being suspended by the league for flagrant fouls or by his own organization for conduct detrimental to the team, DeMarcus Cousins leads the team in scoring (17.0 ppg) and rebounding (10.0 rpg). Cousins has a nice mid-range jump shot, although his back-to the-basket game could still use some work, and has progressed as a passer from the high post. He also is turnover-prone though, averaging 3.0 turnovers per game, so the Sixers need to crowd him when he receives the ball and force him to put the ball on the floor. Besides Cousins, the Kings feature Tyreke Evans and a bevy of undersized guards in Isaiah Thomas, Marcus Thornton, and Jimmer Fredette. Although Evans has improved his three-point shooting to a career-high 35.0%, he is still at his best going to the rim and should be forced into settling for jump shots. A lot of their perimeter players can hit threes if left alone so Philadelphia defenders can’t help too far off them hen doubling down on Cousins or fellow big man Jason Thompson.
Keys to the Game:
- Take the ball to the hoop. In addition to having no shot-blocking presence, Sacramento displays limited effort in staying in front of their men on the defensive end. Holiday and Turner need to get to the rim for easy buckets instead of settling for easy buckets.
- Crash the offensive glass. Thad Young should have another field day against the Kings as his relentless energy and tenacity on the boards are the antithesis of what this Sacramento team brings to the table. He and the rest of the Sixers frontline should grab a handful of offensive boards to help buoy the Philadelphia attack.
Prediction:
The Clippers game and final couple minutes of the Nuggets game aside, Philadelphia has played well against much better competition than Sacramento. With the Kings playing on the tail end of a back-to-back and the Sixers rested, Philadelphia wins fairly easily.
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