The Sixers (0-10) are the first team in NBA to lose their first nine game in back-to-back seasons and after Saturday's loss to San Antonio, the Sixers have lost 20 straight games dating back to last season. Tonight at Wells Fargo Center, the Liberty Ballers host a Mavericks (6-4) team that has won their last three games and their last five overall against the Sixers.
Philadelphia is coming off of an encouraging performance against a veteran Spurs team. Trailing by as many as 19 points, the Sixers mounted a furious 14-2 run in the final minutes to crawl to within four, 87-83. Unfortunately, three costly turnovers following that stretch hurt them and kept them from stealing their first win of the season. Jahlil Okafor had an impressive performance opposite Tim Duncan, a player he looks up to on a regular basis. The third pick of this year's draft scored 21 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. He scored seven of the Sixers 14 points during their fourth quarter run to bring the game to within four. Jerami Grant contributed with 12 points while T.J. McConnell, Phil Pressey and Hollis Thompson each tallied eight points on the night. Meanwhile, Nerlens Noel struggled from the floor, shooting just 2-for-8 with three boards and two assists.
The Mavericks, winners of their last three, are fresh off of a 110-98 win against Houston in which they rested three starters. Dirk Nowitzki was given the night off along with Wesley Matthews and Chandler Parsons during the second game of a back-to-back. Raymond Felton scored 23 points and Charlie Villanueva had 17 points in the Dallas victory.
Game Notes:
- Robert Covington is expected to return to the Sixers lineup tonight. The forward averaged 13.5 points and shot 37.4 percent from beyond the arc last season.
- The Mavericks have won eight of the last nine meetings between the two teams and the last five overall.
- Mavs Wesley Matthews scored 42 points combined between the two meetings against the Sixers last season.
Projected Lineups:
Sixers
PG - T.J. McConnell
SG - Nik Stauskas
SF - Jerami Grant
PF - Nerlens Noel
C - Jahlil Okafor
Mavericks
PG - Deron Williams
SG - Wesley Matthews
SF - Chandler Parsons
PF - Dirk Nowitzski
C - Zaza Pachulia
Injuries:
Sixers: Robert Covington (right MCL sprain) is available with minutes restriction, Richaun Holmes (hamstring) is out, Phil Pressey (stomach virus) is questionable
Mavericks: JaVale McGee is out, John Jenkins is inactive
Game Information:
Tip-off: 7:00pm
Location: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
TV: CSN Philly
Radio: 97.5 The Fanatic
Brandon Apter is a contributor for Philliedelphia.com
