Sixers
Looking to snap two-game skid, Sixers visit playoff-thirsty Bulls
Published24 Mar 2017
Brandon Apter, Sports Talk Philly editor 
The Philadelphia 76ers (26-45) look to snap a two-game losing streak tonight as they visit the Chicago Bulls (34-38) this evening at 8:00 p.m. The Sixers have lost 12 straight meetings with the Bulls, but are looking to but a damper on Chicago's playoff chances. The Bulls are currently sitting in the eight spot in the Eastern Conference, but are just one game ahead of both the Hornets and Pistons.
Philadelphia could be without the services of Jahlil Okafor once again tonight. He's been dealing with soreness in his right knee for the majority of the season, but he's missed more time as of late because of it. The Bulls will get Robin Lopez back after he served a one-game suspension after being involved in a scuffle with Toronto's Serge Ibaka early in the week.
Brett Brown and the Sixers are coming off of a big loss at the hands of the Thunder on Wednesday, 122-97. The biggest difference between the two teams, other than the final score, was the rebounding numbers. OKC out-rebounded Philadelphia 54-25, with Russell Westbrook and Enes Kanter accounting for 22 of the 54 Thunder rebounds. Overall, the Sixers just couldn't keep up. Oklahoma City shot nearly 55 percent, despite hitting just four of 16 from beyond the arc. It was an off night for Dario Saric and Robert Covington, who combined to shoot just 8-for-23 from the floor to go along with five rebounds. Shawn Long led Sixers scorers with 13 off the bench. He also had six rebounds.
Meanwhile, the Bulls defeated the now ninth seeded Detroit Pistons their last time out, 117-95. Nikola Miritic tallied a season-high 28 points on 12-for-15 shooting, including 4-for-6 from beyond the arc. Prior to Mirotic's breakout game, the Bulls had lost eight of their last 10, and are just hanging on to the final Eastern Conference playoff spot. Jimmy Butler contributed 16 points and 12 assists while backup big man Joffrey Lauvergne scored 17 points to go along with seven boards in place of the suspended Robin Lopez. The Bulls lead was cut to two just before the half, but they came out of the locker room and went on a 19-2 run to regain control.
The Sixers and Bulls last met on January 29, a 121-108 win for Chicago. Jimmy Butler and Robin Lopez combined to score 59 of the Bulls' 121 while Philadelphia was led by Ersan Ilyasova's 31 points and Covington's 21-point, 12-rebound effort.
| Matchup Preview | March 24, 2017 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Philadelphia 76ers (26-45, 9-26 Away) |
Chicago Bulls (34-38, 21-15 Home) |
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Game Information:
Tip-off: 8:00 p.m.
Location: United Center, Chicago, IL
TV: CSN
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Stream Live: CSNPhilly.com, NBC Sports Live Extra
