1/23/13
Another 76ers game another 76ers loss. That seems like the
theme of their season as of late. The 76ers were playing their second game in
as many nights and had to travel to Milwaukee to take on the Bucks. The Bucks
are an uptempo, athletic team that plays scrappy on defense. Earlier this
month, the Bucks mutually parted ways with their coach Scott Skiles and
replaced him with interim coach Jim Boylan. Rumors had it that the players were
tuning Skiles out and they needed a new voice to guide them the rest of the
way. The Bucks have a few superstar players playing for their next contract in
Monta Ellis and Brandon Jennings. They also have a lot of size on their team.
The only injury in this game was on the 76ers. Jason Richardson was not with
the team as he is still recovering from left knee synovitis. Royal Ivey made
his first start of the season replacing Richardson in the lineup. They started
Ivey because he could defend Monta Ellis.
The first half was another disappointment for the 76ers.
They had a slow start in the first quarter and the Bucks took advantage of the
76ers slow start. Teams can’t win games when they shoot 30% in the first
quarter while the other team shoots close to 60%. As the game went on, the
76ers started attacking the basket, but they didn’t try to get any contact so
they can get fouled and go to the free throw line. The Bucks were shooting well
and they couldn’t miss. Whenever the 76ers kept clawing at their lead, the
Bucks would answer back with a big shot no matter how guarded they were. The
Bucks rebounded the ball better than the 76ers and were getting second chance
points. Second chance points are critical in a game because an element of
winning games can be decided on who crashes the boards in an efficient way. At
halftime the Bucks led 55-47. Evan Turner and Nick Young both led the 76ers
with 12 points in the half. Ersan Ilyasova led the Bucks with 14 points.
The second half was better for the 76ers, but it was not
enough. When the Bucks had their largest lead at 14 points, the 76ers cut that
lead down to four points at one point in the game. In the end it was not enough
to salvage a win against the Bucks. The 76ers did things differently on offense
too. They did attack the basket, but what they did were drive-and-kick plays.
They drove the ball into the lane, and passed the ball out to the three point
line whenever someone was wide open, and shots went in for the 76ers.
Unfortunately, the 76ers played terrible defense and couldn’t stop the Bucks
from scoring. Spencer Hawes, a bench player for the 76ers, started the third
quarter for the 76ers. This was a surprising move because teams usually insert
their starting lineup at the beginning of the first and third quarters. Lavoy
Allen, the starter that Hawes replaced, was probably in Doug Collins’ doghouse
because he played with a lack of effort. At the same time, Hawes was on a roll
and you can’t take out someone that’s on a hot streak. They had a chance to get
a win in this game, but the 76ers, like they did last game against the Spurs, played
sloppy at the end and turned the ball over a lot and couldn’t finish the deal.
The Bucks won the game by a final score of 110-102. Ilyasova finished with a
double-double. He scored 27 points and grabbed 16 rebounds. Ellis also got a
double-double as he finished with 18 points and 10 assists. Jennings ended with
25 points, including 16 second half points, and dished seven assists. Mike
Dunleavy Jr. scored 11 points coming off the bench. For the 76ers, Turner
finished with 23 points and seven assists. Hawes recorded a double-double and
had an impressive second half. He scored 17 of his 21 points in the half and
collected 12 rebounds, which is a double-double for him. Nick Young ended with
20 points. Thaddeus Young recorded 11 points in the game. Jrue Holiday had a
terrible shooting night, but collected 12 assists.
Overall, this was another game the 76ers fought hard, but it
was not enough. Eventually these games will turn out as wins, but the question
is when will that happen? Hawes had a terrific game. Not only did his stats
tell most of his story, but he was crashing the boards. This is something you
don’t see a lot from Hawes in the season. Nick Young has been playing better
basketball since he was benched for a game a few weeks ago against the Houston
Rockets. Holiday has to take better care of the basketball. Eight turnovers in
a game like this is unacceptable.
Is there anything
else to say about the 76ers season? Sound off and stay tuned on Saturday when
the 76ers host the New York Knicks.
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