 Road Trip To The Swamp The Sixers need to make a statement tonight. Think back to January 1st. Since that date, the Sixers have played 23 games and compiled a 14-9 record. Good, but not great. Now consider that in that time they've only lost 2 games to teams with worse records than they have. One of those losses was the now infamous 0-18 disaster against the Nets. Tonight's game is about making two statements: 1) We are a much, much better team than the Nets; 2) The past 23 games have not been a fluke. After the jump we'll take a quick look at the stats, take a look at a few key match-ups and host the in-game discussion.  The stats are a familiar story, let's hope they can rewrite the ending this time. The Nets shoot better, take better care of the ball and actually get to the line a bit more than the Sixers. On defense, the Nets are putrid. .514 eFG allowed is terrible, they don't force turnovers and they foul at an alarming rate. On paper, the Sixers should win this one in a walk, in my opinion. Here are my keys to the game:
The tip is at 7:30, I won't be here, so it's going to be up to you guys to keep the in-game commentary going. I'll check in with my two cents when I get home tonight. This should be the start of a three-game win streak, minimum. Let's get it done.
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Tonight is an Al Davis moment
I don't care how (ok i care - but not as much as usual)
Just Win Baby
I think you got most of us with you when it comes to yelling at Lou. Someone needs to let him know that he stinks.
Yet - he's probably still better than willie green
I'll be damned if Yi Jianlian gets his career night against us.
Makes me wonder. What is Willie's career high in points? He has put up 30 before right?
Don't know eexactly but he went for around 36 one time in AI's absence. I know he had one killer game at Dallas when AI was injured. Don't know if they are the same game though.
Last game of the season 2 years ago he put up 37 I saw. Pretty hilarious that the guy has
Maybe Daly recognizes how bitch-slapped he was in the last game. He's filling up the box score.
Good 1st. Tons of points in the paint. Dalembert seems to be over his bitterness.
Until he gets 'his' minutes taken away...Sam's a baby - has been for a while now - if the sixers cater to his whininess than the franchise is doomed.
Stagnant start to the 2nd. You can tell Miller is out of the game for sure.
what a surprise the starters get a big lead & the 2nd unit blows it.
Yeah, they have found a new way to do it though. 6 turnovers from the bench already vs. 1 from the starting unit. Gotta love it. Even when Lou is making his shots, he still sucks.
Sp8's with a nice recovery and block after showing on a screen for Harris.
Well then he gets burned on a slip off a supposed screen by Sean Williams and had to foul
Looks like Bernard Fernandez had a good read on Willie breaking out of his shooting slump. Had to happen sometime right?
It is only the half. :)
Either Lou or Willie will be below 50% at the end of the night. That is virtually guaranteed.
don't you mean 30%?
That second q was pitiful. Reggie should've been yanked quick and Theo inserted. Decent number of Sixer fans here, including one reader of this blog. Need a quick start in the third.
Yea Reggie needs to chill with the not keeping himself set on the pick. He has made an offensive foul on this play a habit the last few games with 2 already tonight.
Reggie Evans isn't a very good basketball player :)
Is it me or do the sixers seem unable or unwilling to run the pick and roll as much as most teams?
Sam just got abused by Yi Jianlian. He has no strength - it's sad
Ooh willie - that was a bad pass
Sixers with a lead? Sounds like it is time for Lou to check in.
11-3 run to end the third. Please no bench-kill to start the fourth.
Hopefully it doesn't come to this but free throws (our lack of) are going to be huge.
I hope not. I only really have confidence in Miller down the stretch. Next choice? Speights?
This game is coming down to 2 things. Our lack of converting those free throws or sadly, Keyon frickin Dooling. --Lou with a J with one left on the shot clock
Nice to see Dooling is showing his back up PG prowess late with the offesnive foul.
Dag Igs, about time you started pulling that jumper again!
He needs to put Sam back in and get Reg out of there with 4 left in the game. Sam has been huge tonight.
Instead he takes out Sp8's and puts in Thad
Reggie on cue with an offensive rebound.
Good to see Sam just checked in though for him honestly.
Nice bounce pass by Ig to Thad in the lane to go up by 3
Damn last minute of the game is a bad time for that to happen.
Andre Miller just fell for that FROM BOBBY SIMMONS?
Oh my God.
Good play to go to Speights. That's our money move right now, to be honest.
Please make both of these Dre Miller!
Someone want to break down what has happened over the last minute for us box score watchers?
Simmons missed the free throw for the 4 point play. Timeout. Cleared the right side of the floor for Miller to penetrate but it was clogged so he handed off the Sp8'd right behind him. Sp8's converts little half hook for 2 point lead.
Ig's bites on the Carter fake for 3 and drives for a lay in and tie. Timeout. Clear out for Iggy on the right side and he drives and pump fakes and spins back and is fouled. Missed 1st and made 2nd. Devin Harris launches half courter after getting bumped by Iggy and bobbling it and it goes in.
No way he could have done all of that with the minimal amount (1.2, I think) of time left. Horrendous replays provided to see if he got it off in time or not. UNBELIEVEABLE
Well he did do it.
Great play by Miller, please make these two as redemption for that Bobby Simmons foul.
At least we didn't give up the 3. All square at 95, 13 seconds to win the game, who do we go to?
Iguodala, Miller, Speights are the only choices I hope.
Maybe it's jsut me - but by now you just hve to laugh at how these games end
I had the same reaction. Laughed at how they could find another bizarre last second way to lose.
i fucking knew it
Why did they leave him wide open?????
Big, big loss as Atlanta is getting pasted at the moment and has a very rough stretch this week so they should fall back some. And Det. and Miami play each other tomorrow. I can't find a replay of that last sequence - no way he could have dribbled one time and then Iggy hits the ball and Harris bobbles it and then shoot the darn thing in like 1.2 seconds.
I don't know if you were watching on Comcast SportsNet, but the replays, though crappy, pretty clearly showed that the ball left his hands just a fraction of a second before the lights went off.
1.8 Still not enough time to do what he did. Clock operator must have started it late.
I mean, he didn't get far past halfcourt. I don't see why not.
The bobbling of the ball in the air took at least one full second so there is no way that he catches, dribbles, and shoots it in .8
Another thing was the Nets announcers were saying that NJ did not have any TO's left when they called that last one before Vince tied it up. They were saying that the Sixers players were hollering that it should be a tech. Fratello said that he and Marv had NJ with none left either but their count must have been wrong.
Whether they had that one or not, they didn't have one after Iggy made the 1st free throw to go up by 1 so he should have intentionally missed the 2nd one so that NJ wouldn't gain the advantage of the inbounds pass.
Oops. Sorry, Iguodala missed the 1st and made the 2nd so the last paragraph above is all for naught.
And didn't the league change the start of the clock from the home team's operator to the ref doing it on his belt clip or something like that?
I went back and timed it 3 separate times. It was 2.0 seconds by my calculations. I'm with you guys and thought it was like 3-4 seconds, but the difference between 1.8 and 2.0 is nothing to get excited about. Being a Sixers fan, I might have even started too early. If it was a second or more, I'd be pissed, but I can't get upset about .2 seconds.
Yup, it looked like the started it on first dribble instead of when he first touched the ball, i had about .2 seconds off as well. they won't overturn it and there was nothing nefarious, just a shitty break in a season of them. make your free throws and it never comes to that.
I quit
I am very confident that the last shot should not count, it is impossible to do that in 1.8 seconds. No questions BUT the sixers loss the game, the Nets did not win. And, long term, it is good that they lost. The gave it away w/ poor free throw shooting. And, maybe they will learn how to shoot foul shots now.
But, I agree w/ Brian. I quit. No way other to say it. I had tickets tonite to the game and I decided that the way the sixers were playing, I was not going to waste my gas, tolls and parking. Glad i did not waste it.
Just saw the replay. He even caught the damn ball at the free throw line and didn't fling it until half court. Can't possibly do that in 1.8.
The missed FT's and all of the minutes for Evans had me grumpy all game...
But the finish made me laugh. Its not like either team played all that well or "deserved" the game. Its amusing at this point to see what freak ways this team can find to lose. Maybe these bad breaks will even out during a season that actually means something.
One other thing. I noticed early in the game that Harris (like Lou) likes the jump pass. Was thinking that its interesting how Harris as a good PG gets away with it... and then he goes and gets stuck in the air giving away the game (well almost giving it away.)
Tom Moore stated in his blog the sixers are contacting the league about the last call. I agree. Here is the link:
http://www.phillyburbs.com/opinions/blogs/intell_blogs/intell_blogs_details/article/634/2009/february/23/sixers-plan-to-contact-league-about-last-18-seconds.html
I hope they follow through, this needs to be dealt with in the future even if it does not change anything now.