The Sixers welcomed the Charlotte Bobcats to the Wachovia center tonight, as they looked to avoid their 2nd loss in a row. Coming in Charlotte sat 7th in the Eastern conference, 7.5 games ahead of the Sixers. If the Sixers were still planning to a playoff push, this was one they needed to have. Unfortunately, they never really stood a chance. Charlotte was too strong defensively, forcing another 20 Sixer's turnovers, and holding them to just 41% shooting from the field and just 20% shooting from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, Charlotte shot 50% from the field and 38% from beyond the arc, while turning the ball over just 16 times. Thus, not surprisingly, Charlotte jumped out to a big 14 point lead after a quarter of play. They then went up by 18 at the half and finally a whopping 27, heading into the 4th quarter. The Sixers finally woke up in the 4th quarter, outscoring Charlotte by 12, but it was too late, as the Bobcats still hung on to win easily by 15, 102-87. Ultimately, it was just a totally dominant Charlotte team on this night, and they deserve to get their first playoff birth later this season.
The Sixers on the other hand don't look like a team that deserves anything right now. Sure Elton Brand was solid with 11 and 9 rebounds, as well as Andre Iguodala with 13, Jrue Holiday with 13 and 8 rebounds, Lou Williams with 10, Thad Young with 12 and Rodney Carney with 14. Other than that there really wasn't much to be positive about for the Sixers on this night. I mean what else can you say about a loss like this. It just goes to show what good defensive play will for you. If Sixers could only have played defense like this during season, they might have actually had something to work this year. There is just nothing for the Sixers to work with now. Anyway with the loss the Sixers drop to 23-41 overall, which incredibly is still good enough for 10th in the East, now 8.5 games out of 8th.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
EAGLES NEWS
The Eagles finally signed a free agent today, agreeing with ex-Colts CB, Marlon Jackson, on a 2 year deal worth up to $5.5 million deal if he plays and starts most weeks. Jackson is the rare DB capable excelling at CB and safety. Thus, he'll have the chance to compete for a starting safety position, most likely along side Quintin Mikell. Jackson has proven to be a good player in the past, most notably in 2007 when he was 4th on Colts in tackles with 112. Since then he has torn his ACL twice and played only 11 games in the last 2 seasons. If he is healthy now though he could be a nice fit at safety for the Birds. It could be well into training camp though, before we know just what condition he is in and what impact he'll be able to make for the Birds. So the Eagles may still want to look at a safety in the draft. At any rate it should be interesting to see how things pan out.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued spring training today against the Toronto Blue Jays. Cole Hamels got the start opposite ex-Phils phenom Kyle Drabek, recently traded to Toronto, for Roy Halladay. Both Hamels and Drabek looked good. Drabek went 2 scoreless innings and Hamels went 3 and 2/3rd's innings, allowing just 1 run on 1 hit. In the end it was the Phils who came out on top, with John Mayberry Jr. , knocking in his 5th run of the spring, while Greg Dobbs doubled twice, and Cody Ransom slammed a homerun in a 4-2 win.
Tuesday, March 09, 2010
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers welcomed the New York Islanders to the Wachovia center tonight as they looked to make it 2 in a row after an easy win over the Mape Leafs in their last game. Coming in they had defeated the Islanders in 14 straight contests. A win would give them a Flyer's record 15 straight wins over the Isles. Early on though it looked like New York might deny the record. Goals by John Tavares, early in the 1st period, and Kyle Okposo late in the 2nd period, gave the Isles the early 2-0 edge. Then with about 8 minutes to play in the 2nd period, the Orange and Black went to work. With an assist from Danny Briere, Jeff Carter scored at that point in the 2nd period to cut it to 2-1. Early in the 3rd period Claude Giroux scored off the power play to knot it up at 2. Finally with a little over 6 minutes to play, Simon Gagne scored another power play goal, with an assist from Giroux, for a 3-2 lead. Micheal Leighton, who saved 23, then made sure it held up the rest of the way, to clinch the Flyers record breaking 15th straight win over the Isles.
It was a particularly gruesome win for the Orange and Black with James Van Reimsdyk, Lukas Krajicek and Dan Carcillo, all leaving the ice bloodied and beaten at one point in the 1st period. Fortunately, all three toughed it out and returned to the ice before the game was over. However, their absence early on, explains why the Flyers fell behind in this one in the first place. This was just 2nd win of the season for the Flyers, when trailing after 2 periods. They're going to need a few more of these, if they hope to reach the playoffs with a decent seeding. Ultimately, it was once again, perhaps not the Flyers best game, but they found a way to win, and that's really all that matters at this point. With the win ,the Flyers with 74 points overall now, remain 6th in the East, just 5 points behind 5th place Ottawa and 4th place New Jersey, and a comfortable 7 points clear of the 9th place Rangers.
It was a particularly gruesome win for the Orange and Black with James Van Reimsdyk, Lukas Krajicek and Dan Carcillo, all leaving the ice bloodied and beaten at one point in the 1st period. Fortunately, all three toughed it out and returned to the ice before the game was over. However, their absence early on, explains why the Flyers fell behind in this one in the first place. This was just 2nd win of the season for the Flyers, when trailing after 2 periods. They're going to need a few more of these, if they hope to reach the playoffs with a decent seeding. Ultimately, it was once again, perhaps not the Flyers best game, but they found a way to win, and that's really all that matters at this point. With the win ,the Flyers with 74 points overall now, remain 6th in the East, just 5 points behind 5th place Ottawa and 4th place New Jersey, and a comfortable 7 points clear of the 9th place Rangers.
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers traveled to Indiana tonight as they looked to make it 2 in a row, after a stirring win over the Raptors in their last game. Coming in the Pacers were well behind the Sixers in the Eastern conference standings and without their best player, Danny Granger, whose nursing an injury. So it was going to be easy pickins for the Sixers tonight right? Oops. Unfortunately, the Sixers did not shoot nearly as well tonight as they had in their last game, at just 45% from the field and only 31% from beyond. Moreover, they turned the ball over a whopping 20 times which will just kill your chances of winning every time. Indiana didn't necessarily play all that much better than the Sixers, but they shot better from beyond and did not make anywhere near as many mistakes, with only 10 turnovers. Thus, after a tepid 1st quarter, it was Indiana who pushed to a 2 point lead at the half and Indiana that extended to a 9 point lead heading into the 4th quarter, before hanging on to win by 11, 107-96.
Andre Iguodala had a particularly horrid night with just 5 points, while Elton Brand contributed just 7 and 3 rebounds. I mean what happened to those guys out there tonight. It's no wonder the Sixer's lost. Meanwhile, Sammy Dalembert was great with 16 and 11 rebounds, Jrue Holiday was impressive again with a Sixer's high 21, Lou Williams was solid with 11 and 6 rebounds and finally Willie Green was the only bright spot of an otherwise listless bench effort, with 13 and 4 rebounds. Even he turned the ball over twice though. It was just one of those nights where the Sixers killed themselves with mistakes all game long, and they're just good enough right now to get away with nights like that. Not that it matters at this point anyway as it seems the Sixers are beginning to give up on any hopes they might have still had of making the playoffs for the 3rd year in a row. With the loss the Sixers drop to 23-40 overall, still barely good enough for 10th in the East, but now 8.5 out of 8th.
Andre Iguodala had a particularly horrid night with just 5 points, while Elton Brand contributed just 7 and 3 rebounds. I mean what happened to those guys out there tonight. It's no wonder the Sixer's lost. Meanwhile, Sammy Dalembert was great with 16 and 11 rebounds, Jrue Holiday was impressive again with a Sixer's high 21, Lou Williams was solid with 11 and 6 rebounds and finally Willie Green was the only bright spot of an otherwise listless bench effort, with 13 and 4 rebounds. Even he turned the ball over twice though. It was just one of those nights where the Sixers killed themselves with mistakes all game long, and they're just good enough right now to get away with nights like that. Not that it matters at this point anyway as it seems the Sixers are beginning to give up on any hopes they might have still had of making the playoffs for the 3rd year in a row. With the loss the Sixers drop to 23-40 overall, still barely good enough for 10th in the East, but now 8.5 out of 8th.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued spring training today against the Atlanta Braves. Roy Halladay got his 2nd start of the spring tossing 3 scoreless innings and striking out 5, and the Phils racked up 13 hits on their way to a 7-4 win. Jayson Werth hit a 2 run homer, Ryan Howard collected 2 hits and, in his first game of the spring Shane Victorino collected a hit as well.
Monday, March 08, 2010
EAGLES NEWS
The Eagles were busy today at last. First they restructured o lineman Stacy Andrew's contract so he'll earn less next season. At the same time they also traded Reggie Brown to Tampa Bay for a 6th round pick. Finally with all that done and some extra cap space available the Eagles re-signed Jason Avant to a 5 year deal. So this offseason isn't a total loss for the Birds. At least they are taking care of their own players, albeit while ignoring all those available as free agents, and I guess that's better than doing nothing at all.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued spring training today against the Yankees. Kyle Kendrick got the start and was impressive once again, tossing 3 scoreless innings, while allowing just 1 hit. Unfortunately New York eventually came up on winning end of the box score, with a 7-5 win. Still Kendrick continues to make it tough for the Phils to select a 5th starter.
Sunday, March 07, 2010
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers went for the Toronto sweep tonight as they took on the Maple Leafs back at the Wachovia center, not long after the Sixers demolished the Raptors in Toronto. They Orange and Black were also coming having lost 2 in a row so they really needed this to break their losing streak. Thanks to another solid night from Micheal Leighton, with 27 saves out of 28 shots faced, Jeff Carter's 30th goal of the season, and Dan Carcillo's restraint in early in the game which led to a bunch of early power plays for the Flyers and Carter's goal, the Orange and Black were able to match the Sixers with a win and a snapped losing streak. Carter's scored gave the Flyers the early 1-0 lead in the 1st period. After Toronto tied it at 1 early in the 2nd period, Simon Gagne and Danny Briere both scored within a minute of another to push it to 3-1 Flyers. From there Leighton ensured there would be no Toronto comeback with some key saves down the stretch to preserve the Flyer's lead.
While it was nice to get the win, considering how poorly Toronto had played this season coming in, the Flyers should have been able to win much more easily than they did. Hey, a win is a win though. The Flyer's defense was much better today, holding Toronto to just 28 shots on goal and no power play tallies. It much easier to win when you know your D is in control of things so it will be key for the Sixers to continue with defensive efforts like these. Other than that they seem to be in pretty good shape right now. With the win they currently have 72 points overall, still good for 6th in the East and only 5 games out of 5th. So they are right in the thick of things now, with an easy section of their schedule coming up. Hopefully they'll take advantage of this lenient stretch to put together a winning streak and secure their playoff positioning.
While it was nice to get the win, considering how poorly Toronto had played this season coming in, the Flyers should have been able to win much more easily than they did. Hey, a win is a win though. The Flyer's defense was much better today, holding Toronto to just 28 shots on goal and no power play tallies. It much easier to win when you know your D is in control of things so it will be key for the Sixers to continue with defensive efforts like these. Other than that they seem to be in pretty good shape right now. With the win they currently have 72 points overall, still good for 6th in the East and only 5 games out of 5th. So they are right in the thick of things now, with an easy section of their schedule coming up. Hopefully they'll take advantage of this lenient stretch to put together a winning streak and secure their playoff positioning.
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers traveled to Toronto tonight for a date with the Raptors as they looked to snap a 5 game losing streak against the current number 6 seed in the Eastern conference. Given how poorly the Sixers had played against the Eastern conference's best thus far this season, the prospects of snapping the losing streak on this night were not high. Still, as usual the Sixers put forth maximum effort and this time it payed off. While their defense struggled again allowing Toronto to shoot 51% from the field en route to a 101 points and their offense was red hot. They shot 55% from the field and a whopping 75% from beyond the arc with 9 treys. They matched Toronto shot for shot early on and in the end their firepower proved to be too much for the Raptors to handle. The two teams were tied after a quarter of play, but by the half they had pulled ahead by 8, then 14 heading into in the 4th quarter and finally finished off the night with a 13 point, 114-101, victory. You just wonder whether this comes just in time to save the Sixers from giving up on the season or just too late to make a difference.
The man of night for the Sixers was Thaddeus Young who posted a career high 32 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 steals to fuel the Sixers to the win. Jrue Holiday was also impressive with 21, 6 assists, and 7 rebounds and Andre Iguodala was solid as always with 16 and 10 assists. Meanwhile, Elton Brand added 12 and 9 rebounds and Lou Williams posted 12, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists. Even Samuel Dalember, who came off the bench for the 1st time this season, was a solid contributor with 8 and 3 rebounds. So it was another total team effort for the Sixers and one of their best in some time. They're really going to need a lot of more those if they still have designs on a playoff run and at this point, event if they do a lot more efforts like these, that's still a pretty big if. So with the win the Sixers move to 23-39 overall, which keeps them 10th in the East, now within 8 games of the 8th.
The man of night for the Sixers was Thaddeus Young who posted a career high 32 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 steals to fuel the Sixers to the win. Jrue Holiday was also impressive with 21, 6 assists, and 7 rebounds and Andre Iguodala was solid as always with 16 and 10 assists. Meanwhile, Elton Brand added 12 and 9 rebounds and Lou Williams posted 12, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists. Even Samuel Dalember, who came off the bench for the 1st time this season, was a solid contributor with 8 and 3 rebounds. So it was another total team effort for the Sixers and one of their best in some time. They're really going to need a lot of more those if they still have designs on a playoff run and at this point, event if they do a lot more efforts like these, that's still a pretty big if. So with the win the Sixers move to 23-39 overall, which keeps them 10th in the East, now within 8 games of the 8th.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued spring training today against the Tampa Bay Rays. J.A Happ got the start and went 2 and 1/3rd shaky innings in a 5-3 loss. Despite loss there was plenty to be positive about for the Phils. Top prospect Dominic Brown had 3 hits in the game and top pitching prospect Phillip Aumont worked 2 and 1/3rd scoreless innings in relief. As for Happ, again it is just way too early in the spring to be worried yet.
Saturday, March 06, 2010
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued spring training today against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Joe Blanton got the start and allowed 3 runs on 5 hits, including a 2 run homer by Ryan Church, in 2 innings of work. Meanwhile, Dwayne Wise led off for the Phils with a triple and scored a run, in a 2 run 1st inning. Later Greg Dobbs knocked in a run to tie it at 3 in the 7th inning. From there neither team could score for the remainder of the game into a 10th inning and the game ended tied at 3. So it wasn't the best start to spring for Joe Blanton but it's early yet so there's nothing to worry about.
Friday, March 05, 2010
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers finished off their post Olympic road trip in Buffalo tonight as they looked to bounce back from an embarrassing loss to Florida by tightening things up against the Sabres. They actually got to U.S Olympic hero, Ryan Miller, early in the 2nd period, with Simon Gagne scoring just 4 minutes in, for a 1-0 lead. A couple minutes later Thomas Vanek beat Micheal Leighton to knot it up at 1. Then early in the 3rd period Mike Richards got to Miller again, unassisted for a 2-1 lead. That is, until Adam Mair knotted it up at 2 with about 6 minutes to play. From there neither team could score for the remainder of regulation so the game went into overtime. There, just a couple minutes in Tim Connolly broke the Flyer's hearts with the 3-2 game winner.Still, since the game went into overtime the Flyers at least earn 1 point.
The Flyers' defense was again a little off allowing 35 shots on goal, but Leighton picked them up with 32 saves. Unfortunately, his teammates didn't help him out enough with some goals and the Orange and Black came up short in this one. Simon Gagne and Mike Richards continued their sparkling post Olympic play tonight as well. They will have to keep it up if the Flyers are to make the playoffs and go anywhere this season. For now with the 1 point tonight the Flyers now have 70 overall, just enough to remain 6th in the Eastern conference. So they are okay for now.
The Flyers' defense was again a little off allowing 35 shots on goal, but Leighton picked them up with 32 saves. Unfortunately, his teammates didn't help him out enough with some goals and the Orange and Black came up short in this one. Simon Gagne and Mike Richards continued their sparkling post Olympic play tonight as well. They will have to keep it up if the Flyers are to make the playoffs and go anywhere this season. For now with the 1 point tonight the Flyers now have 70 overall, just enough to remain 6th in the Eastern conference. So they are okay for now.
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers welcomed the Boston Celtics to the Wachovia cennter tonight as they looked to snap their current 4 game winning streak. They already upset the Celts once this season in Boston so a win in this one was not totally out of the question. In fact it looked like the Sixers believe they could win and actually they had the lead heading into the 2nd quarter. At the half they were still within 3, and heading into 4th quarter they were still down just 8. With a couple minutes left to play they actually had a chance to close within three again after a steal by Andre Iguodala, but he came up short on a layup, then Boston was successful on their next trip down the floor to up the lead to 5. They then turned it up on D from there, causing the Sixers to blunder their way through the rest of the game. Eventually they lost a heartbreaker 96-86. So once again they put up a good fight against one of the NBA's best, but proved that they just aren't at a high enough level this season to be able to come out on top.
Lou Williams was impressive again with a game high 22. Andre Iguodala added 14, and Elton Brand returned to the lineup to contribute a solid 17, but after that the rest of the Sixers were befuddled by the Boston defense. The fact that the Sixers were even able to keep this one close simply speaks to the way Boston is playing right now, especially considering they recently lost to the Nets. Still against the Sixers they were able to shoot 50% from the field and hang on for the win. So the defense or lack thereof continues to hurt the Sixers. Anyway with the loss the Sixers drop to 22-39 overall, still good enough for 10th in the East, but now 8.5 out of 8th.
Lou Williams was impressive again with a game high 22. Andre Iguodala added 14, and Elton Brand returned to the lineup to contribute a solid 17, but after that the rest of the Sixers were befuddled by the Boston defense. The fact that the Sixers were even able to keep this one close simply speaks to the way Boston is playing right now, especially considering they recently lost to the Nets. Still against the Sixers they were able to shoot 50% from the field and hang on for the win. So the defense or lack thereof continues to hurt the Sixers. Anyway with the loss the Sixers drop to 22-39 overall, still good enough for 10th in the East, but now 8.5 out of 8th.
PHILLIES NEWS
The Phils continued spring training today with an A and B game against the Toronto Blue Jays. Cole Hamels got the start in the A game and allowed 1 run on 2 hits and struck out two in a couple of innings, in a 14-9 loss. Jamie Moyer started the B game and tossed 3 scoreless innings in a 3-2 loss. So it was a good start to the spring for the 2 biggest question marks in the Phils starting rotation. After their first outings of the spring it looks like it is going to be interesting to see who gets the number 5 spot in the rotation, Moyer or Kyle Kendrick.
Thursday, March 04, 2010
PHILLIES NEWS
It's official the 2010 spring training season has begun for the 2 time defending NL champions, as the Phils played their 1st spring training game today against the Yankees. Roy Halladay got the start and tossed 2 scoreless innings, without allowing a hit, not a bad way to start his tenure with the Phils. Kyle Kendrick, in his quest to earn the #5 starter job or the job as the Phils long reliever, followed Halladay with 2 more scoreless innings and the Phils took a 1-0 lead into the 9th. Sergio Escalona almost blew it allowing to rally ahead 2-1, but his teammates picked him up with a 9th inning rally for a 3-2 win. So it's a good start for the Phils in spring training and here's to another great season. Play ball!
Wednesday, March 03, 2010
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers have really fallen on hard times again as of late, as they traverse the toughest part of their schedule this season. Things didn't get any easier tonight as the Atlanta Hawks, currently 3rd best in the East, welcomed the Sixers to Atlanta. Once again the Sixers fought hard all night and kept it close with the Hawks for a good chunk of the night. Unfortunately, the Sixer's defense again failed to hold up, allowing Atlanta to shoot 50% from the field and 40% from the beyond the arc, and eventually Atlanta pulled away in the 3rd quarter to win easily by 19, 112 - 93. Once Atlanta got control in the 2nd half it was never really in doubt and there was nothing the Sixers could do. Their defense just isn't good enough right now beat teams like Orlando last night or Atlanta in this one. The only bright spot for them on D was Dalembert who racked up another 10 rebounds and 2 blocks.
As for the scoring ,Lou Williams had a huge night, scoring 30 while dishing off 3 assists. Meanwhile, Andre Iguodala had 11 and 7 assists, Willie Green posted 17 off the bench and Sammy had all around night scoring 10 points as well. All in all when it came down to it the Sixers were simply out classed by Atlanta tonight. With no Elton and no AI, they just don't the talent or desire to match up with elite teams like Atlanta has been this season. Hopefully they'll figure out a way to turn things around before they get too bad, but it is not looking good right now. With the loss they drop to 22-38 overall, but incredibly that's still good enough for 10th in the conference, but now 7.5 games out of 8th.
As for the scoring ,Lou Williams had a huge night, scoring 30 while dishing off 3 assists. Meanwhile, Andre Iguodala had 11 and 7 assists, Willie Green posted 17 off the bench and Sammy had all around night scoring 10 points as well. All in all when it came down to it the Sixers were simply out classed by Atlanta tonight. With no Elton and no AI, they just don't the talent or desire to match up with elite teams like Atlanta has been this season. Hopefully they'll figure out a way to turn things around before they get too bad, but it is not looking good right now. With the loss they drop to 22-38 overall, but incredibly that's still good enough for 10th in the conference, but now 7.5 games out of 8th.
FLYERS NEWS
After racking up their 5th straight win with ease last night against the Lightning, the Flyers traveled across Florida for a meeting with the Florida Panthers. The Panthers haven't been that much better than the Lightning this season so you would think this one would be another easy Orange and Black win. Unfortunately, while they have brought their scoring back from the break with them, it seems the Flyers totally lost their way defensively. They allowed a whopping 42 shots on goal and hung Micheal Leighton out to dry more than once as the he allowed a season worst 7 goals. The Flyers did at least keep it close for a while early on. Florida jumped out to q quick 2-0 lead after the 1st period, but power play tallys from Danny Briere and Jeff Carter twice pulled the Flyers within one early in the 2nd period, at 2-1 and then 3-2. They then seemed to run out of gas as Florida scored 3 straight goals for a 6-2 lead. From there the Orange and Black made one last push with goals by Ville Leino in the waining moments of the 2nd period, and Ryan Parent early in the 2nd period, cut it back to 6-4. Unfortunately ,that was as close as they would get before Florida closed out a 7-4 win.
Playing on back to back nights just after the olympic break was simply too much for the Flyer's to handle. The defense and Leighton had undoubtedly their worst games of the season thus far, but they were clearly fatigued. They have some time now before their next game so hopefully the'll be able to right the ship again before long. Otherwise it could be a long rest of the season. If nothing else it was at least nice to see the Orange and Black fight all the way to the end rather just rollover as they seemed to at times earlier this season. So anyway despite the loss the Flyers still remain 6th in the Eastern conference, and only 6 points out of 5th.
Playing on back to back nights just after the olympic break was simply too much for the Flyer's to handle. The defense and Leighton had undoubtedly their worst games of the season thus far, but they were clearly fatigued. They have some time now before their next game so hopefully the'll be able to right the ship again before long. Otherwise it could be a long rest of the season. If nothing else it was at least nice to see the Orange and Black fight all the way to the end rather just rollover as they seemed to at times earlier this season. So anyway despite the loss the Flyers still remain 6th in the Eastern conference, and only 6 points out of 5th.
Tuesday, March 02, 2010
FLYERS NEWS
The Flyers returned from the Olympic break tonight with newly crowned gold medalists Mike Richards and Chris Pronger in tow. They were on a 4 game winning streak heading into the break and tonight in Tampa against the Lightning they simply picked up where they left off. It was tight for the 1st 2 periods, with Steve Stamkos scoring twice for Tampa and Mike Richards scoring in the 1st period and assisting on a Dan Carcillo score in the 2nd period for a 2-2 tie after 2. The 3rd period however, was all Orange Black. Richards assisted Simon Gagne on back to back power play goals for a 4-2 lead just 5 minutes into the period. A few minutes later Claude Giroux assisted James Van Reimsdyk on another score for a 5-2, and then a couple minutes after that Giroux himself scored on the power play for a 6-2 lead. Finally a few minutes after that Jeff Carter scored shorthanded to finish off the 7-2 route, the 5th straight win for the Orange and Black.
Richards had some night with a goal and 3 assists which just goes to show how a gold medal can change a person. Gagne was equally impressive with a 2 goals and an assist, as was Giroux with a goal and 2 assists, and Dan Carcillo with a goal and a assists. Still, Richards' 4 point night was the most remarkable. I don't know he was able to come up with a performance like that, especially after all those games he just played at the Olympics. While the scoring was off the charts, the Flyers' defenisve effort was not their best, allowing 34 shots on goal, but it was certainly. Plus, as usual Micheal Leighton held his own with 32 saves, more than enough for the win. With several teams struggling to shake off the post Olympic exhaustion, it would be huge if the Flyer's could keep playing like this, but I guess we'll see. At any rate with the win they now have 69 points overall, good for 6th in the East and well within range of the most of the teams ahead of them.
Richards had some night with a goal and 3 assists which just goes to show how a gold medal can change a person. Gagne was equally impressive with a 2 goals and an assist, as was Giroux with a goal and 2 assists, and Dan Carcillo with a goal and a assists. Still, Richards' 4 point night was the most remarkable. I don't know he was able to come up with a performance like that, especially after all those games he just played at the Olympics. While the scoring was off the charts, the Flyers' defenisve effort was not their best, allowing 34 shots on goal, but it was certainly. Plus, as usual Micheal Leighton held his own with 32 saves, more than enough for the win. With several teams struggling to shake off the post Olympic exhaustion, it would be huge if the Flyer's could keep playing like this, but I guess we'll see. At any rate with the win they now have 69 points overall, good for 6th in the East and well within range of the most of the teams ahead of them.
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers and AI officially came to an agreement today that Iverson will not return to the Sixers for the remainder of the season as he continues to tend to his ailing daughter. This is doesn't mean he's retiring or that he's finished with the Sixers for good, but it feels unlikely that he'll come back with the Sixers next season or play for anyone else.
Monday, March 01, 2010
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers returned home at last tonight as they welcomed superman, Dwight Howard, and the Magic to the Wachovia center. The Magic came in with the 2nd best record in the Eastern conference while the Sixers came in with no AI or Elton Brand, who was shelved just before game time with achilles tendinitis. So needless to say there weren't high hopes for a a Sixer victory on this night. Still the Sixers came out firing in the 1st half and actually had the lead after the 1st quarter before going into the half down by 7. In the 2nd half Orlando heated up from beyond the arc, opening things up for Howard to dominate underneath. As a result the Sixers found themselves down 21 heading into the 4th and they could not recover, eventually falling by 21, 126-105. All told Orlando hit 15 treys, shooting 65% from beyond the arc and 58% from the field. You're just not going to win very often when you allow Orlando to put up those kinds of numbers.
For the Sixes it wasn't a terrible night with all 5 starters scoring in double figures, but with no AI or Elton, that left Lou Williams and Thad Young in the starting lineup and thus zero production off the bench. So that didn't really help them tonight either. Jrue Holiday was the real bright spot for the Sixers as posted the best night of his career thus far, with a career high 23 points and 6 assists. Andre Iguodala added 19, Thad Young 17, and Lou Williams 13, and Sammy Dalembert had another great night with 12 and 11 rebounds. Unfortunately, Sammy D's effort just went for naught tonight. The other positive for the Sixers tonight was that they finished just about even with the Magic in rebounding, 35 - 34, but again that didn't really help them on this night. Anyway with the loss the Sixers drop to 22-37 overall, but remain 10th in the Eastern conference, now 6.5 games out of 8th. Things could be worse I suppose
For the Sixes it wasn't a terrible night with all 5 starters scoring in double figures, but with no AI or Elton, that left Lou Williams and Thad Young in the starting lineup and thus zero production off the bench. So that didn't really help them tonight either. Jrue Holiday was the real bright spot for the Sixers as posted the best night of his career thus far, with a career high 23 points and 6 assists. Andre Iguodala added 19, Thad Young 17, and Lou Williams 13, and Sammy Dalembert had another great night with 12 and 11 rebounds. Unfortunately, Sammy D's effort just went for naught tonight. The other positive for the Sixers tonight was that they finished just about even with the Magic in rebounding, 35 - 34, but again that didn't really help them on this night. Anyway with the loss the Sixers drop to 22-37 overall, but remain 10th in the Eastern conference, now 6.5 games out of 8th. Things could be worse I suppose
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Friday, February 26, 2010
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers finished their west coast trip tonight in L.A against Kobe and the Lakers. It had been an up and down trip for the Sixers coming in and if the pattern held they would be up for this one. Indeed they were up for this one and gave the Lakers all they could handle. However, despite the usual lack of effort from the L.A, their overwhelming talent advantage won out on this night. Still it was a commendable effort by the Sixers, especially considering they were only 9 strong(usually a team at least 12 active players) against arguably the NBA's best team . They could have easily rolled over but instead they fought hard all night long and it almost payed off. They actually led by 1 at the half and were still within 5 heading into the 4th quarter. In the 4th it seemed perhaps that the lack of fresh bodies off the bench finally got to them as they tired just bit. Still, they refused to let L.A get away from them, but simply did not have enough left to mount any sort of comeback, eventually succumbing by 9, 99-90.
No one was more up for the Sixers on the night than Sammy Dalembert, who put forth arguably his best perfomance of the season thus far, with 24 and 11 rebounds. Lou Williams added a solid 16 and 7 assists and Andre Iguodala and Thad Young each chipped in with 13. So it was a total team effort. Well, except for Elton Brand who had an especially awful night. While they didn't put forth a whole lot of effort, the Lakers did at least make an effort to keep Brand in check, and that's probably what one them the game. Brand put just up 2 points and 4 rebounds, about half his normal output, and not at all what the Sixers needed out of him to get the win. If he had only compiled his usual 10 points and 10 rebounds, the Sixers would at least been with L.A at the end, but it just wasn't his night. Against the taller Lakers he just couldn't find the space he needed to get off his trademark mid range jumper or get inside to pull down rebounds.
All in all despite the loss, I am still proud of the way my Sixers fought tonight. I think they put up a much stronger effort than most teams would have in their position and that's commendable at least. With the loss the Sixers drop to 23-36 overall, still good enough for 10th in the East, but well off the pace now for 8th now, at a full 7 games back. It is going to take a lot for them to dig out of that hole and into the playoffs.
No one was more up for the Sixers on the night than Sammy Dalembert, who put forth arguably his best perfomance of the season thus far, with 24 and 11 rebounds. Lou Williams added a solid 16 and 7 assists and Andre Iguodala and Thad Young each chipped in with 13. So it was a total team effort. Well, except for Elton Brand who had an especially awful night. While they didn't put forth a whole lot of effort, the Lakers did at least make an effort to keep Brand in check, and that's probably what one them the game. Brand put just up 2 points and 4 rebounds, about half his normal output, and not at all what the Sixers needed out of him to get the win. If he had only compiled his usual 10 points and 10 rebounds, the Sixers would at least been with L.A at the end, but it just wasn't his night. Against the taller Lakers he just couldn't find the space he needed to get off his trademark mid range jumper or get inside to pull down rebounds.
All in all despite the loss, I am still proud of the way my Sixers fought tonight. I think they put up a much stronger effort than most teams would have in their position and that's commendable at least. With the loss the Sixers drop to 23-36 overall, still good enough for 10th in the East, but well off the pace now for 8th now, at a full 7 games back. It is going to take a lot for them to dig out of that hole and into the playoffs.
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers continued their west coast trip tonight in Phoenix as they looked to make it two wins in a row. They actually played a decent game for the 2nd time in as many nights, but this time the Suns proved to be too tough for a decent Sixer's effort to overcome. They just didn't play well enough defensively, allowing Phoenix to shoot over 50% from the field with 8 treys. As a result Amare Stoudemire, Steve Nash, and Jason Richardson all scored in the 20s, and you're not going to beat the Suns very often when you let those 3 beat up on you like that. In fact the Sixers were never really that close. They trailed by 8 after the 1st quarter, 11 at the half, and 15 heading into the 4th quarter. They finally put together a bit of run to cut into the Phoenix lead in the 4th, but it was too late and eventually the Suns hung on for a 106-95 win.
Despite the loss the Sixers still had several solid performances across the board. Andre Iguodala led the way as usual with 20, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists, Lou Williams posted 19, Thad Young scored 16 off the bench, and Mo Speights had his best game in some with 12 off the bench. Unfortunately, none of it was enough against the Suns on this night. With the loss the Sixers are now 3-3 so far in the 2nd half of the season, the very definition of inconsistent and the very thing that could keep them out any chance for the playoffs this season. The big thing that seems to be missing for the Sixers right now is their defense. They played such strong D heading into the all-star break, but since the break it just hasn't been there. Overall the Sixers are now just 22-35 overall, but they're still 10th in the Eastern conference, and still 6.5 games out of 8th. Does anyone ever win in this conference?
win this conference.
Despite the loss the Sixers still had several solid performances across the board. Andre Iguodala led the way as usual with 20, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists, Lou Williams posted 19, Thad Young scored 16 off the bench, and Mo Speights had his best game in some with 12 off the bench. Unfortunately, none of it was enough against the Suns on this night. With the loss the Sixers are now 3-3 so far in the 2nd half of the season, the very definition of inconsistent and the very thing that could keep them out any chance for the playoffs this season. The big thing that seems to be missing for the Sixers right now is their defense. They played such strong D heading into the all-star break, but since the break it just hasn't been there. Overall the Sixers are now just 22-35 overall, but they're still 10th in the Eastern conference, and still 6.5 games out of 8th. Does anyone ever win in this conference?
win this conference.
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
SIXERS NEWS
Following their 2nd embarrassing loss in 3 days the Sixers traveled out to Oakland tonight for matchup with the lowly Golden State Warriors, as they looked to rebound once again. They didn't play their best game but against an awful Warriors they didn't need to be at their best. They good night, at 48% from the field and 45% from beyond the arc with 9 threes. Golden state on other hand shot under 40% from the field and from beyond, hitting just 13 treys, despite putting up 33 of them. So the Sixers were easily able to jump out to the early lead and with 26 and 10 rebounds from Lou Williams and 22 and 7 assists from Iggy they never looked back. In fact the Sixers had a commanding 18 point lead at halftime and the game appeared to be over. Then Goldent State finally got hot for the only time of the night, but it was too late
Despite a furious final Golden State Rush the Sixers eventually hung on to win by 8, 110-102. So all in all it was the Sixer's finest hour, but it was a solid night for them and they got the win they needed. In addition to outscoriing the Warriors they also out rebounded them 50-48 and that proved to be important for the Sixers at times. Aside from Iggy and Lou, 3 other Sixers scored in double figures, Rodney Carney with 16 off the bench, Jrue Holiday with 15 and 6 assists, boy does he look good all of the sudden, and Elton Brand with 12. So it was an all around for the Sixers tonight. With the win the Sixers move to 22-34 overall, still 10th in the Eastern conference,6.5 games out of the 8th.
Despite a furious final Golden State Rush the Sixers eventually hung on to win by 8, 110-102. So all in all it was the Sixer's finest hour, but it was a solid night for them and they got the win they needed. In addition to outscoriing the Warriors they also out rebounded them 50-48 and that proved to be important for the Sixers at times. Aside from Iggy and Lou, 3 other Sixers scored in double figures, Rodney Carney with 16 off the bench, Jrue Holiday with 15 and 6 assists, boy does he look good all of the sudden, and Elton Brand with 12. So it was an all around for the Sixers tonight. With the win the Sixers move to 22-34 overall, still 10th in the Eastern conference,6.5 games out of the 8th.
EAGLES NEWS
Well, it's official the Brian Westbrook era is over in Philadelphia. The Eagles announced today that they will release Westbrook on March 5. He was slated to make $7.25 million for the Birds next season, but for a 30 year old running back, who looked every bit of it last season, that was apparently too much for the Eagles to commit too. After everything BWest has done for the Eagles in his career and everything he has meant to them as the franchise' all time leader in yards from scrimmage, it is shame it had to end like this after a rash of injuries and one very forgettable season. I would have been nice to see him end things on his own terms. Still, although his time with the Eagles is finished, that doesn't mean his in NFL is over. Of course it's hard to imagine him in anything other than Eagles' midnight green, so I guess we'll see. Without Westbrook on their side for next season Lesean McCoy will probably the number 1 guy, so the Birds will have to look for a new number 2 either in the draft or via free agency. It should be interesting to see who they acquire.
Monday, February 22, 2010
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Saturday, February 20, 2010
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers traveled to Chicago tonight for a key matchup with the Bulls, as they looked to build on their impressive win over the Spurs last night. Unfortunately for the Sixers for the 2nd time in their last 3 games it just wasn't there for them. Playing their 2nd game in as many days the Sixers did appear to be a little sluggish and in fact Eddie Jordan went a little deeper with his bench than usual to try to keep the team fresh. It didn't work. The Bulls jumped all over the Sixers in the first half and sprinted out to an 18 point lead at the half. The Simply never recovered after that and by the end of night they have suffered their worst loss of the season thus far, 122-90 drubbing, at the hands of the Bulls. I mean it was never really close after the 1st quarter and it is just a total embarrassment for the Sixers to lose like this after a win.
Much like their game against the Heat the Sixers were completely off all night, shooting just 38% from the field, and 31% from beyond the arc. Chicago on other shot 46% from the field and 53% from beyond the arc with 8 treys and that just killed the Sixers time and again. The Sixers were also, outrebounded, outhustled, and frankly outplayed on the night. I thought their performance against the Heat as their worst of the season, but this one may have been worse. The only bright spots for the Sixers on the night, were Andre Iguodala with 23 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists, and AI who finally seemed to find his game again, scoring 13. Other than that it was night to forget for the Sixers and hopefully they won't have any more like this, because this is unacceptable. Anyway with the loss the Sixers drop to 21-34 overall and remain 10th in the Eastern conference, fortunately still 6.5 games out of 8th.
Much like their game against the Heat the Sixers were completely off all night, shooting just 38% from the field, and 31% from beyond the arc. Chicago on other shot 46% from the field and 53% from beyond the arc with 8 treys and that just killed the Sixers time and again. The Sixers were also, outrebounded, outhustled, and frankly outplayed on the night. I thought their performance against the Heat as their worst of the season, but this one may have been worse. The only bright spots for the Sixers on the night, were Andre Iguodala with 23 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists, and AI who finally seemed to find his game again, scoring 13. Other than that it was night to forget for the Sixers and hopefully they won't have any more like this, because this is unacceptable. Anyway with the loss the Sixers drop to 21-34 overall and remain 10th in the Eastern conference, fortunately still 6.5 games out of 8th.
Friday, February 19, 2010
SIXERS NEWS
Following their embarrassing loss to Miami earlier this week, the Sixers looked to rebound in a big way tonight as they welcomed the San Antonio Spurs to the Wachovia center. The Sixer's don't have a good history against the Spurs and haven't won a game in San Antonio in quite a while. Fortunately they were home tonight. They actually got off to a bit of a slow start and trailed by 7 at the half. Then funny thing happened late in the 3rd quarter. Ticked off after his teammate, Elton Brand, was called for a charge, wiping away dunk that would have pulled his team within one, Samuel Dalembert let the officials have it and was given a technical, his 2nd in the game's last 30 seconds, and was ejected from the game to the displeasure of his teammates. Sammy's tirade turned out to be just what the doctored ordered for the Sixer's needed. They just fired up and suddenly turned on the afterburners, as the rest of the game turned in a fastbreak contest. With Tony Parker hobbled by ankle issues, San Antonio could not keep up and the Sixers ran away with a somewhat surprising 106-94 victory.
Compared to what they did against Miami tonight was a total 180 for the Sixers. They shot 51% from the field and out rebounded the taller Spurs 45-39. From beyond arc they only shot 25% with a couple treys, but they also only put up 8 treys so that didn't hurt them as much as it had against Miami. Conversely, San Antonio put up 21 treys but only hit 5 of them, that's just 23% , and that really killed their victory hopes for the night. As for the scoring, the Sixers got huge nights from Andre Iguodala and Lou Williams(off the bench) who each had put 20, as well as Brand who nearly joined them in the 20s with 18. Iggy also put up 9 rebounds and 8 assists to just miss a triple double. Other key Sixer efforts, were Thad Young with 12 off the bench, and Jrue Holiday with his best game, scoring 13, while dishing off 4 assists and racking up 5 rebounds. In his 2nd game back, AI once again struggled a bit with just 7 points, but he also pulled down 8 rebounds and dished off 4 assists, so he did enough. Finally Jodie Meeks made his Sixer's debut tonight and did well, nothing and I mean nothing, 0 points, 0 rebounds, 0 assists, 0 turnovers, 0 fouls, 0 blocks, and steals, all in a blistering 2 minute venture off the bench. Okay he did take a couple shots, but he missed them both. Hopefully he'll get better at some point.
The Sixers actually trailed by 3 heading into the 4th quarter, and coming into tonight they had only won 3 times when trailing to start the 4th quarter. So winning tonight was a huge step in the right direction for them. With the win the Sixers move to 21-33 overall, still 10th in the Eastern conference, 6.5 games out of 8th. So all in all this was an impressive way for the Sixers to rebound from the loss to Heat and hopefully they can keep it up.
Compared to what they did against Miami tonight was a total 180 for the Sixers. They shot 51% from the field and out rebounded the taller Spurs 45-39. From beyond arc they only shot 25% with a couple treys, but they also only put up 8 treys so that didn't hurt them as much as it had against Miami. Conversely, San Antonio put up 21 treys but only hit 5 of them, that's just 23% , and that really killed their victory hopes for the night. As for the scoring, the Sixers got huge nights from Andre Iguodala and Lou Williams(off the bench) who each had put 20, as well as Brand who nearly joined them in the 20s with 18. Iggy also put up 9 rebounds and 8 assists to just miss a triple double. Other key Sixer efforts, were Thad Young with 12 off the bench, and Jrue Holiday with his best game, scoring 13, while dishing off 4 assists and racking up 5 rebounds. In his 2nd game back, AI once again struggled a bit with just 7 points, but he also pulled down 8 rebounds and dished off 4 assists, so he did enough. Finally Jodie Meeks made his Sixer's debut tonight and did well, nothing and I mean nothing, 0 points, 0 rebounds, 0 assists, 0 turnovers, 0 fouls, 0 blocks, and steals, all in a blistering 2 minute venture off the bench. Okay he did take a couple shots, but he missed them both. Hopefully he'll get better at some point.
The Sixers actually trailed by 3 heading into the 4th quarter, and coming into tonight they had only won 3 times when trailing to start the 4th quarter. So winning tonight was a huge step in the right direction for them. With the win the Sixers move to 21-33 overall, still 10th in the Eastern conference, 6.5 games out of 8th. So all in all this was an impressive way for the Sixers to rebound from the loss to Heat and hopefully they can keep it up.
PHILLIES NEWS
The officially began reporting to Clearwater for spring training a couple days ago. Charlie Manuel has already decided to make Roy Halladay the opening day starter. It should be another great season for the Phils this year and I can't wait for it to start. Go Phils!
Thursday, February 18, 2010
SIXERS NEWS
The NBA trade deadline was today and as expected the Sixer's did make a move. However, neither Andre Iguodala, nor Samuel Dalembert went anywhere and no marquee players came back to the Sixers in return. Instead the Sixers sent benchwarmers, Primoz Brezec and Royal Ivey, as well as a 2nd round pick to the Milwaukee Bucks for um, benchwarmers, Center Francisco Elon and guard Jodie Meeks, the former Kentucky star who went 41st in the 2009 NBA draft. Neither is really upgrade for the Sixers at this point. Elon used to be elite defensive center, and helped the Spurs to an NBA title a few years ago. He's barely played this year and probably won't play much for the Sixers either. His contract does expire at the end of the season though, so the Sixers can dump him then and free up 1.7 million towards a possible free agent signing in the offseason. As for Meeks he's well, young and he hasn't done much this season either. He does have the potential though to become a good shooting guard some day. After all, he is at present Kentucky's record holder for points in a game and was a very good 3 point shooter in college. If nothing else he can add to the Sixer's bench scoring which was already pretty good anyway.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
SIXERS NEWS
The Sixers returned from the all star break tonight at the Wachovia center with a key matchup against the Miami Heat, who came in 7th in the East. Unfortunately for the Sixers this one turned out to be a total mismatch. Not necessarily because the Heat are that much better than the Sixers, but because the Sixers just played so poorly tonight. They shot just 37% from the field and a blistering .083% from beyond the arc. It would have been a complete 0-fer from beyond the arc but Jrue Holiday managed to drain the Sixer's only trey of the day. The Sixer's were also dominated on glass 52-37. So when they did miss they usually didn't get the chance to clean it up. The only bright spot for the Sixers was that they only turned the ball over 6 times, to Miami's 13. Of course when you consistently fail to do anything when you do have the ball, it doesn't really matter how well you protect it.
Incredibly, despite their poor play, the Sixers managed to keep things close for a quarter, with the score only 23-21 Miami heading into the 2nd quarter. By the half Heat were up by 11 and by the 4th quarter the Miami lead was a laughable 27. Not surprisingly that's about how it ended with Miami winning easily 105-78. It just wasn't the Sixer's night tonight and it won't be their night ever again if they keep playing like this. I didn't think the all-star could make a team so rusty, but hopefully that's all this was, just a little post break rust. Speaking of rust, AI finally returned to the lineup tonight and obviously he didn't help very much coming off the bench for just 4 points and a couple of assists and rebounds. So he's got a little rust to shake off too. Anyway so with the embarrassing loss the Sixers drop to 20-33 overall but are still 10th in the Eastern conference, 6.5 games out of 8th.
Incredibly, despite their poor play, the Sixers managed to keep things close for a quarter, with the score only 23-21 Miami heading into the 2nd quarter. By the half Heat were up by 11 and by the 4th quarter the Miami lead was a laughable 27. Not surprisingly that's about how it ended with Miami winning easily 105-78. It just wasn't the Sixer's night tonight and it won't be their night ever again if they keep playing like this. I didn't think the all-star could make a team so rusty, but hopefully that's all this was, just a little post break rust. Speaking of rust, AI finally returned to the lineup tonight and obviously he didn't help very much coming off the bench for just 4 points and a couple of assists and rebounds. So he's got a little rust to shake off too. Anyway so with the embarrassing loss the Sixers drop to 20-33 overall but are still 10th in the Eastern conference, 6.5 games out of 8th.
Monday, February 15, 2010
Sunday, February 14, 2010
SIXERS NEWS
The NBA All Star game was tonight in Dallas. Dwayne Wade took mvp honors as the Eastern conference won a rare barn burner over the West 141-139, after Carmelo Anthony missed a 3 pointer at the buzzer. Allen Iverson sat the night out so once again no Sixers took part in the action.
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