At the beginning of the season, the first thing I did was look at the Sixers schedule to see when they might earn their first win. Milwaukee seemed like a possibility as did Orlando, but no luck. The next one on the schedule was against the Celtics. Just a few years removed from being an Atlantic Division powerhouse, the Celtics have fallen from grace in losing aging veterans Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and others. With a roster led by Rajon Rondo, the Celtics came into last night's game losers of three straight.
What better time for the Sixers to jump on them when they were down? Well, that was the plan. In the better part of the first half of last night's game, it looked as if the Sixers were on a fast track to their first win of the season. After taking a 27-22 lead into the second quarter, the Sixers extended their lead to as many as nine in the first half. The Celtics fought back though, outscoring Philly 24-19 in the second quarter to lock things up at 46 heading into the half.
Unfortunately, early in the second half of the game, the Celtics began to take advantage of Sixers turnovers and put together a run. They came out of the half and scored five straight points before a Nerlens Noel bucket with 10:40 remaining in the third. The Sixers retook the lead, 54-52, thanks to an 8-1 run of their own with just under eight to play in the third. Following that, the Celtics put together a 9-0 to take a 61-54 lead with 5:39 remaining. After three, Boston led 73-68, with the Sixers still within striking distance.
Boston came out in the fourth on a 9-2 run, stretching their lead to 82-70 with just under 10 minutes left in the game. The Sixers could cut the lead to just seven before letting the Celtics run away with things. The Sixers fell in this one, 101-90.
Though this seemed like a really good chance for the Sixers first win, it was more so a game to get the Celtics back on track after losing three straight. Turnovers continued to plague the Sixers, with Boston scoring 24 points off of Philly's 26 turnovers. Now at 0-11, the Sixers upcoming schedule doesn't provide much hope for a win. Brett Brown said the most important thing right now is to keep the mood high amongst his young squad.
“The only thing I’m strong about and feel a responsibility to make sure it doesn’t unravel is we have to keep the locker room together,” Brown said. “We have to keep our guys believing that if they don’t cheat days — if they really come in and invest in what we are selling — then there’s a chance of finding some wins, to keeping the group together and to keep developing our young players. That’s all we have and that’s all we’re saying and I believe it.” [CSNPhilly.com]
The Sixers host the Suns (7-5) on Friday night and then they travel to New York to square off against the annually under-performing Knicks at Madison Square Garden. Following those two games, the Sixers host Portland, Brooklyn, Dallas and San Antonio. Yikes. The Knicks and Nets seem to provide the highest probability for a win, but it still seems unlikely.
There were good signs last night though. Nerlens Noel and Michael Carter-Williams were back in the starting five and the Sixers rookie big-man had a good night, scoring ten points and pulling down eight rebounds. Noel noted the poor third quarter after the game, saying they lost a step or two out of the half.
“We lost some energy and we didn’t communicate on defense,” said Noel, who had 10 points and eight rebounds in 34 minutes. “(Rajon) Rondo does a great job running that team and that was a challenge.”
“It’s tough,” Noel said. “I thought we played well throughout the game except for some mental lapses.” [CSNPhilly.com]
Carter-Williams scored 11 on 4-13 shooting to go along with six rebounds, five assists and a team-leading four turnovers. The reigning Rookie of the Year said he is still trying to get his groove after sitting out to recover from shoulder surgery this offseason.
"I'm still trying to find my flow, ya know when I should be more aggressive to the basket and be a little more passive with my teammates. We got some new guys who I haven't played with for a while and some for the first time, so I'm still trying to figure things out. I think my teammates are doing a great job helping me out and we should get a win shortly." [CSNPhilly.com]
"I don't think we made the big plays in the fourth quarter," Carter-Williams said. "We had a little bit of a run and had mistakes on defense, but we need to play better, especially myself. Shooting a low shooting percentage and having 11 points isn't going to win us games, and being one of the leaders and go-to guys, I think I have to perform better. We also have to perform better as a team defensively. " [Philly.com Sports]
While Carter-Williams claims that the Sixers should get their first win soon, the constant development of young players is really the focus of this Philadelphia team, whether we like it or not. Coach Brown is satisfied with the way the team is playing and says they deserve a 'W' for the effort they've put forth.
“I think our guys deserve it,” Brown said. "I have no complaints with what we do. They bang out good days, it’s just that they don’t get rewarded in the win column. That’s the judgment most people look at, which is fair because it’s pro sports. But we try to look in a little different direction.” [CSNPhilly.com]
In his first game coming off the bench this season, Tony Wroten put together another great game, scoring 21 points on 7-19 shooting while dishing out seven assists as well. Wroten hit a 40-foot buzzer beater at the end of the third to cut the Sixers lead to five.
"We just have to buckle down better on defense," said Tony Wroten, who led the Sixers with 21 points and seven assists off the bench. "In the fourth quarter there was miscommunication on the switching on screens and this and that. The NBA is the best of the best and you have to be a perfectionist.
"[Rondo] is a great player, an All-Star. He can affect the game without scoring, just a quarterback of the team. That's what you want from the top player. It's not so much about scoring but what he does to get his teammates better." [Philly.com Sports]
For those wondering, former Sixer Evan Turner had just two points, both from the free throw line, on 0-4 shooting. The number two pick in the 2010 draft pulled down four rebounds and contributed three assists in 15 minutes of play. This season with the Celtics, he's averaging 7.6 points and 3.4 rebounds per game.
The Sixers, now 0-11, are inching closer to the 1972-73 team that lost 15 straight to start their 9-73 season. In 2009-10, the Nets began the year 0-18. The Sixers will look to eliminate their chance at that kind of history when they host the Suns on Friday night at the Wells Fargo Center.
Brandon Apter is a Writer for Sixerdelphia
