Raptors-76ers Preview

By NICOLINO DIBENEDETTO
Posted Apr 04 2012 12:43AM

A rough stretch has dropped the Philadelphia 76ers out of the Atlantic Division lead, and they're falling further back in the race.

The 76ers are hoping Andre Iguodala is back on the court Wednesday night as they try to begin solving their inconsistent play and beat the Toronto Raptors for the fourth time in a row.

Philadelphia (29-24) has lost seven of 11 since a three-game winning streak, which started with a blowout win over Boston on March 7. The recent struggles have caused the Sixers to fall to seventh place in the Eastern Conference after relinquishing the Atlantic lead to the Celtics, whom they now trail by 1 1/2 games.

They visit Boston for the conclusion of the season series Sunday.

Before then, Philadelphia will try to get untracked while hosting Toronto (19-35), then Orlando on Saturday.

The 76ers lost ground to the Celtics on Tuesday, falling 99-93 at Miami while surrendering 41 points to LeBron James. They also lost Iguodala in the third quarter when Mario Chalmers' swipe for the ball connected with the swingman's face.

"I thought my eye was gone," Iguodala said. "It was hurting really bad. I had a really bad headache for about 10 minutes."

It's unclear if the injury will keep Iguodala out Wednesday. He's averaged 19.1 points, 6.0 assists and 6.2 rebounds in his last 11 home games against the Raptors.

Evan Turner has been providing some unexpected scoring punch for the Sixers, averaging 15.5 points while hitting 55.8 percent of his field goals over the last four games. He had 26 points Tuesday to match his career high, and his recent production is an improvement from his season average of 9.3 points on 44.3 percent shooting.

Louis Williams is looking to build on his 18-point performance against the Heat. The guard leads Philadelphia with 15.4 points per game - ranking him second in the NBA in bench scoring - but has shot just 38.1 percent in his last 11 games, missing 11 of 17 shots Tuesday.

Williams has converted 29.3 percent from the field in his last four against Toronto, although the Sixers didn't need much scoring to defeat the visiting Raptors 97-62 in the most recent meeting Jan. 7.

Philadelphia has won three in a row over the Raptors after losing six of the previous seven.

Toronto, however, enters this meeting having won three of four. It has taken advantage of a pair of home matchups with lowly opponents, following Sunday's 99-92 win over Washington with a 92-87 victory Tuesday against league-worst Charlotte.

Andrea Bargnani has been a big part of that success, averaging 25.3 points in the last four games. He had 30 against the Bobcats for his highest total in 15 games since missing 20 with a strained left calf.

"I feel better," he said. "Every day I get better. I just have to keep working and keep playing hard."

Bargnani is averaging 23.6 points in his last five visits to Philadelphia, getting 21 while grabbing 11 rebounds there in January.

DeMar DeRozan wasn't nearly as effective in that matchup, making 4 of 13 shots from the floor to finish with eight points after totaling 56 in the previous two meetings with the Sixers.

The swingman is averaging 20.0 points in four games overall since sitting out two with an ankle injury.

Raptors roll over fading 76ers 99-78

By DAN GELSTON
Posted Apr 04 2012 10:32PM

PHILADELPHIA (AP) Best team in the Atlantic Division was a nice title for three months.

The Philadelphia 76ers wanted more.

A winning record for the first time in seven seasons. A top-four seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. All of those goals are slipping out of reach for the Sixers.

Andrea Bargnani scored 24 points and DeMar DeRozan had 18 to lead the Toronto Raptors to their third straight win, 99-78 over the Sixers on Wednesday night.

Back in January, the Sixers thumped Toronto 97-62 en route to a sizzling 20-9 start. Those days are over for the fading franchise. Elton Brand and Jrue Holiday had 20 points in Philadelphia's eighth loss in the last 12 games. The Sixers (29-25) lost their grip on first place in the Atlantic - and end the season with a stretch of nine road games over the final 11 that could jeopardize a playoff spot.

The good times are gone in Philadelphia and the sub-.500 Raptors were the latest team to roll over the Sixers.

The Sixers' second-half fade reached a low point in the fourth when they scored only four points in the first 7 minutes of the quarter. They missed 13 straight shots in the fourth and scored only 22 points in the second half.

The seven points in the fourth were a team-record low for a fourth quarter dating back to the 1954-55 season.

"I really don't have anything," coach Doug Collins said. "I don't know what to say."

Both teams played the night before, but while the Raptors beat Charlotte, the Sixers lost a tough one in Miami.

The Raptors got hot in the fourth, shooting 50 percent, while the Sixers missed 17 of 20 shots. Led by Ed Davis' 14 rebounds, the Raptors outrebounded the Sixers 46-29.

"I think this has been a tough season on the players, I really do," Collins said. "I don't think there's any question there's a lot of fatigue. I don't deny that."

Bargnani's soft mid-range jumper stretched Toronto's lead to 11 points and the Raptors were on their way to their ninth road win this season.

The Raptors had opened up the game on 3s in the third. Alan Anderson snapped a tie game with one to make it 65-62 and Bargnani hit one as part of a rare four-point play for a 73-66 lead. The Raptors took an eight-point lead into the fourth and squashed a Sixers team devoid of the fun and sweet shooting that was so much a part of their mid-winter romp.

"It was just an excellent team effort. Guys stayed together," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. "We had every excuse in the world coming in on the back-to-back, and this team beat us by 30 last time."

Andre Iguodala left Tuesday's game against Miami with a left eye bruise and wore protective goggles in the first half against the Raptors. He was scoreless and ditched them at the break when they became a nuisance. He wasn't much better without them, scoring six points. He was booed when he fired up an airball late in the fourth.

Igudoala has never really been embraced by the fans and didn't help the relationship when he told Sports Illustrated: "In Philly, it's not about who you are, it's about what you do for us. You could be the worst person in the world, but if you score a lot of points or win a championship, you can murder somebody."

Iguodala said he was just using a "figure of speech" to describe the mood of the Philly fans.

"It's just the way the media works," he said.

Collins brushed off the comments.

"With Dre, he's just not a guy who's going to say a lot of warm and fuzzy things," he said. "That's just not what he does."

The Sixers are 9-16 after the 20-9 start.

He didn't do much of anything in the first half. Holiday made his first eight shots for the Sixers, a run that included a 3 to end the first half for a 56-55 lead.

Bargnani scored seven points in third and was aided by a strong effort out of Aaron Gray was enough to give the Raptors and rare winning streak.

Jose Calderon briefly left after Brand accidentally elbowed him in the right eye. Calderon returned with his eye bandaged - and nailed a 3 late in the fourth. He had 12 points and 13 assists.

"I felt good out there and I wanted to give it a try after the stitched me up," he said.

NOTES: The Sixers are 8-6 in the second of back-to-backs. ... The Sixers have scored less than 80 points in five of the last 11 games. ... The Raptors made all 12 free-throw attempts. The Sixers were 7 of 8.

Notebook: Raptors 99, Sixers 78

Posted Wednesday April 4, 2012 10:17PM

By Andy Jasner, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Andrea Bargnani scored 24 points and DeMar DeRozan had 18 points for the Toronto Raptors in their 99-78 victory over the reeling Philadelphia 76ers Wednesday night at the Wells Fargo Center. Alan Anderson scored 13 points, Ed Davis grabbed 14 rebounds and Jose Calderon had 12 points and 13 assists for the balanced Raptors, who won their third straight game.

Jrue Holiday and Elton Brand scored 20 points each for the Sixers, who fell to 29-25.

QUOTABLE: "Every guy in this room is improving and getting better every day. We want to finish the season as strong as possible."
-- Calderon.

THE STAT: The Sixers scored just seven points in the fourth quarter and missed 13 straight shots. The Sixers also had 22 points in the second half, a floor record for least amount of points in a second half. The previous low was 25.

TURNING POINT: Toronto built a 79-71 lead after the third quarter and then turned up the defensive pressure in the fourth. The lead swelled to 14 at 90-76 and the Raptors cruised from there.

HOT: Anderson was rewarded with a start and he played very well, hitting five of his seven shots for the Raptors.

NOT: Evan Turner shot 2-for-10 and Jodie Meeks was 1-for-5 for the Sixers.

QUOTABLE II: "It was just a great, gutsy team effort."
-- Raptors coach Dwane Casey

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: In addition to his 20 points, Brand added four rebounds, four blocked shots and three assists. He was a rare bright spot on an otherwise tough night for the Sixers.

INSIDE THE ARENA: There was a bit of a late-arriving crowd for this game against the Raptors. By halftime, though, the decibel level improved and announced attendance was 18,186.

QUOTABLE III: "When you let a team like that hang around, it comes back to bite you."
-- Brand

GOOD MOVE: The Raptors moved the ball around the perimeter and inside and out quite well. There was an offensive rhythm throughout the game, especially in the fourth quarter.

BAD MOVE: The Sixers didn't get to the free throw line enough. It has been a problem all season, especially in tight games down the stretch when jumpers have stopped falling. Philadelphia was 7-for-8 from the free throw line.

ROOKIE WATCH: Nikola Vucevic had two rebounds in slightly more than three minutes while Lavoy Allen didn't play for the Sixers.

NOTABLE: Andre Iguodala suffered a left eye contusion in Tuesday's loss at Miami, but he started against Toronto and donned a pair of protective glasses in the first half. Iguodala began the second half without the glasses. "One of the snaps kept coming off," Iguodala said. ... The Raptors put together their first three-game winning streak since Nov. 17-20, 2010. ... Holiday hit his first eight shots. ... The seven points scored by the Sixers in the fourth quarter is their fewest in any quarter in building history dating to 1996. It's also the fewest fourth quarter points the team has scored in the shot clock era going back to 1954-55. ... The Sixers' bench scored a season-low 18 points. ... Over the last five games, Bargnani is averaging 25 points. ... Toronto outrebounded the Sixers 46-29. ... The Sixers have scored less than 80 points five times in the last 11 games.

NEXT: For the Raptors, Friday vs. Cleveland, Sunday @ Oklahoma City, Monday @ Indiana. For the Sixers, Saturday vs. Orlando, Sunday @ Boston, Tuesday @ New Jersey.

• Raptors: Bayless
• 76ers: --

• Raptors: --
• 76ers: --

• Lead Changes: 9
• Times Tied: 14

• Arena: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA
• Officials: #24 Mike Callahan, #7 Kevin Fehr, #36 David Jones
• Attendance: 18186
• Duration: 2:07