Portland (5-7) at Philadelphia (7-7) 7:00 pm EST
PHILADELPHIA (Ticker) - Philadelphia 76ers coach Maurice Cheeks
faces the Portland Trail Blazers for the first time since the
they fired him in March when the teams square off Tuesday at the
Wachovia Center.
Cheeks coached Portland for 3 1/2 seasons before being dismissed
after the team got off to a slow start last year.
The former 76ers star point guard became the ideal candidate to
inherit Philadelphia's coaching position this offseason, and he
has enjoyed mixed results through the first month of his tenure.
Philadelphia has dropped four of its last five games, including
a heartbreaking setback vs. New York on Saturday afternoon. The
76ers led by 13 at halftime before fighting back in the fourth
quarter and ultimately losing, 105-102 in overtime, on rookie
Nate Robinson's buzzer-beater 3-pointer.
Allen Iverson continued his sizzling start to the season with 40
points and 10 assists and Chris Webber added 19 and nine
rebounds for the Sixers, who were outrebounded, 53-42.
The Trail Blazers had dropped four of their last five games
before squeaking out a 77-75 win vs. Atlanta on Sunday behind
Zach Randolph, who scored 24 points on 12-of-15 shooting and
added 15 rebounds.
Darius Miles scored 12 points and rookie Martell Webster chipped
in 10 off the bench for Portland, which outscored the Hawks,
21-12, in the fourth quarter to pull out the victory.
Portland has dropped four of the last six meetings with
Philadelphia. The teams split two meetings last season, with
each winning on the other's home court.





