Despite a poor game from Andre Iguodala, the Philadelphia 76ers managed to shut down the New Jersey Nets and take a 82-77 win in Newark. Twenty-year-old point guard Jrue Holiday had 19 points and five assists to lead the Sixers, and Spencer Hawes added 18 points. The Nets got 16 points from Brook Lopez and 14 from Devin Harris, but New Jersey shot just 34 percent from the floor.
NBA Scores And More: 76ers Tighten Defensive Screws, Beat Nets
That's the story here: Philadelphia's defense is cranking up the pressure, and given that Doug Collins is at the helm, opponents should be worried. The Sixers have risen to 10th in defensive efficiency after a slow start. Iguodala, an eternal trade rumor, is a big part of the team's defensive success, but don't shrug off Holiday (a real ingenue) or Elton Brand.
For the first time in years, since Mo Cheeks had this team sprinting up and down the floor, the Sixers have an identity. Granted, it’s an identity -- smashmouth defensive grinding -- that went out of style 15 years ago. But still. Doug Collins has blown more NBA knowledge out of his nose into a handkerchief that most of us will ever possess.
The Nets are wallowing, and I just don’t think trading away Terrence Williams is going to fix much.
Liberty Ballers checks in with the highly touted rookies Evan Turner and Derrick Favors; Nets Daily notes that Devin Harris called a team meeting after the game.Nuggets 111, Magic 94
Orlando forgot how to play defense, and wasted a perfectly good night from J.J. Redick, who had 29 points on 12 field goal attempts, which should be counter to the laws of nature. The Nuggets scored about 1.2 points per possession, far above what the Magic typically allow. There was nothing particularly mystical about Denver's offensive performance: the Nuggets didn't dominate the offensive glass or avoid turnovers with particular ease. They shot the ball really, really well. Carmelo Anthony racked up 35 points on 14-21 shooting from the floor and 9-11 from the line. Ty Lawson, starting in place of Chauncey Billups, had 16 points and six assists. Al Harrington, the joker, went 4-10 from beyond the arc, and took exactly zero shots from inside the arc. He's a power forward.
The Magic couldn't do anything other than hit Redick or feed Dwight Howard (21 points on 9-15 shooting) on offense. The rest of the team shot 16-51, 31 percent. The Magic have fallen to 16-9; last season at this point, with the exactly same roster, the team was 19-6.
Orlando Pinstriped Post credits Denver’s complementary players; Denver Stiffs digs into Carmelo Anthony trade rumors that circulated Pepsi Center during the game.
In other action:
Lakers 103, Wizards 89: Andrew Bynum returned as the Lakers bullied the Wizards in D.C. Missing John Wall and Andray Blatche and with the Lakers at full-strength, the Wizards needed to play really, really well to stay in the game. Instead, they shot 40.7 percent, with starting guard Kirk Hinrich and Gilbert Arenas shooting eight of 25. Washington did avoid turnovers and crushed the offensive glass (19 in 52 opportunities), but it's very hard to shoot so poorly and beat the Lakers, unless it's the 2010 NBA Finals.
Bobcats 97, Raptors 91: The teams' leading scorers in this game were Jerryd Bayless and Nazr Mohammed. I'd venture to say a solid percentage of NBA fans and/or national TV color analysts would have trouble remembering which of the two teams each played for. Nazr's Bobcats prevailed thanks to a really strong shooting night made all the easier by Toronto's porous defense. These teams are truly a contrast of styles. Charlotte took all of six threes; Toronto took 26.
DeMar DeRozan also took a photograph of Tyrus Thomas, in the air high above:
Michael Jordan is not amused.
Pistons 103, Hawks 80: Atlanta got whooped by the visiting Pistons, with that winning margin being created almost entirely in the fourth quarter. Detroit was up three entering the fourth; in less than four minutes, hot shooting earned the Pistons an 11-point lead. By the middle of the quarter, the lead expanded to 15, and Detroit never looked back. Who did the damage in that six-minute stretch? Tracy McGrady had a pair of threes, and Charlie Villanueva had nine points. There you go, Hawks: you were beaten by T-Mac and Charlie V. Jamal Crawford scored just two points, his lowest total since a 1-point night last February.
Rockets 118, Kings 105: The Kings, missing Tyreke Evans, couldn't sustain its blistering offense longer than one quarter. The Kings were up 30-27 after a quarter, but were outscored by 13 and nine points in the next two frames, rendering the fourth garbage time. Luis Scola, a usual suspect, was huge for the Rockets, with 23 points and 10 rebounds in just 29 minutes. DeMarcus Cousins and Jason Thompson played well up front for the Kings (17 and 15 points, respectively, both on 50 percent or better shooting), but the defense couldn't stay in front of Scola and Sacramento's three ball-handling guards -- Beno Udrih, Luther Head and Pooh Jeter -- combined for 10 turnovers.
Warriors 108, Timberwolves 99: Good news, everyone: the Warriors are not as bad as the Wolves. David Lee and Kevin Love were in the same building and time didn't cease to exist! Love had a very Love-y 13 points and 14 rebounds, while Lee had a Lee-like 10 and 11. Lest you think Golden State's interior defense is any good now, note that Darko Milicic went gonzo, with 25 points (!!!). But Warriors guards Monta Ellis and Reggie Williams outscored Minnesota's Luke Ridnour-Wes Johnson backcourt 60-9, and not even the great Darko monster can solve that riddle.
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