casper
12-29-2009, 12:54 PM
BRAND LEADS SIXERS TO ROAD WIN OVER BLAZERS
THE SPORTS NETWORK
Portland, OR (Sports Network) - Elton Brand notched a season-high 25 points on 11-of-16 shooting off the bench to help lead the Sixers in a 104-93 triumph over the Portland Trail Blazers at the Rose Garden.
Allen Iverson returned from a four-game absence while dealing with an arthritic knee to score 19 points and dish five assists for Philadelphia, which produced its first win three games into a six-game road trip.
"I've been working, especially on my jumper, just trying to get my legs under me, get my legs stronger, so I can get that lift that I need," said Iverson.
Marreese Speights sank 7-of-8 from the field to lead a trio of Sixers with 14 points. Andre Iguodala and Samuel Dalembert also scored 14, with the former adding nine assists and the latter eight boards.
Philadelphia snapped a three-game slide overall for just its third win in the last 19 games.
"You need a lot of toughness out there. The whole problem has been defense, rebounding, things like that, so we need that toughness out there; we need to get those rebounds we need to go to the basket, get post catches, we need that sort of thing," said Brand.
Brandon Roy scored 24 points, and LaMarcus Aldridge posted 17 points and 12 rebounds for the Trail Blazers, who had a four-game win streak stopped.
Andre Miller and Jeff Pendergraph chipped in 11 points apiece, while Steve Blake scored 10 in the loss.
Portland held a 25-22 edge after one quarter but a pair of Speights' buckets in the paint helped tie the game at 36 nearing the halfway point of the second.
The Blazers ripped off the next nine points, with five from Roy, and took a 49-43 lead into the break. The hosts came out of the locker room wielding a hot hand and pushed the lead to 10 on a Roy deuce five minutes in.
The Sixers chipped away at Portland's lead with a 13-4 stretch, as an Iguodala three-pointer dropped for only a 65-64 deficit with four minutes to go.
Royal Ivey's make from beyond the arc moments later tied it at 69, and his jump shot to beat the third-quarter buzzer sent the visitors into the final frame with a 77-73 lead.
"We just didn't have that extra gear. They just were stronger down the stretch and we didn't have that extra gear to put them away. They just did a good job of scrapping down the stretch," said Roy.
A quick 10-2 burst early in the fourth ended on a Speights dunk to give Philadelphia a double-digit advantage at 87-77. Two free throws by Iverson and a Speights' jumper at the midway point pushed the margin to 91-78.
An Iverson bucket at the three-minute mark saw the Sixers' lead still holding strong at 99-85, and an Iguodala slam with less than two minutes to play helped allow the lead to remain in double digits until the final horn.
Game Notes
Philadelphia swept the home-and-home season series between the two clubs a year ago and has won seven of the last 10 in Portland...Brand added nine rebounds for Philadelphia, which shot a scorching 57.7 percent from the field...Portland hit 42.2 percent of its shots.
THE SPORTS NETWORK
Portland, OR (Sports Network) - Elton Brand notched a season-high 25 points on 11-of-16 shooting off the bench to help lead the Sixers in a 104-93 triumph over the Portland Trail Blazers at the Rose Garden.
Allen Iverson returned from a four-game absence while dealing with an arthritic knee to score 19 points and dish five assists for Philadelphia, which produced its first win three games into a six-game road trip.
"I've been working, especially on my jumper, just trying to get my legs under me, get my legs stronger, so I can get that lift that I need," said Iverson.
Marreese Speights sank 7-of-8 from the field to lead a trio of Sixers with 14 points. Andre Iguodala and Samuel Dalembert also scored 14, with the former adding nine assists and the latter eight boards.
Philadelphia snapped a three-game slide overall for just its third win in the last 19 games.
"You need a lot of toughness out there. The whole problem has been defense, rebounding, things like that, so we need that toughness out there; we need to get those rebounds we need to go to the basket, get post catches, we need that sort of thing," said Brand.
Brandon Roy scored 24 points, and LaMarcus Aldridge posted 17 points and 12 rebounds for the Trail Blazers, who had a four-game win streak stopped.
Andre Miller and Jeff Pendergraph chipped in 11 points apiece, while Steve Blake scored 10 in the loss.
Portland held a 25-22 edge after one quarter but a pair of Speights' buckets in the paint helped tie the game at 36 nearing the halfway point of the second.
The Blazers ripped off the next nine points, with five from Roy, and took a 49-43 lead into the break. The hosts came out of the locker room wielding a hot hand and pushed the lead to 10 on a Roy deuce five minutes in.
The Sixers chipped away at Portland's lead with a 13-4 stretch, as an Iguodala three-pointer dropped for only a 65-64 deficit with four minutes to go.
Royal Ivey's make from beyond the arc moments later tied it at 69, and his jump shot to beat the third-quarter buzzer sent the visitors into the final frame with a 77-73 lead.
"We just didn't have that extra gear. They just were stronger down the stretch and we didn't have that extra gear to put them away. They just did a good job of scrapping down the stretch," said Roy.
A quick 10-2 burst early in the fourth ended on a Speights dunk to give Philadelphia a double-digit advantage at 87-77. Two free throws by Iverson and a Speights' jumper at the midway point pushed the margin to 91-78.
An Iverson bucket at the three-minute mark saw the Sixers' lead still holding strong at 99-85, and an Iguodala slam with less than two minutes to play helped allow the lead to remain in double digits until the final horn.
Game Notes
Philadelphia swept the home-and-home season series between the two clubs a year ago and has won seven of the last 10 in Portland...Brand added nine rebounds for Philadelphia, which shot a scorching 57.7 percent from the field...Portland hit 42.2 percent of its shots.