Wizards vs. 76ers Preview
Philadelphia, PA (AP) – Still seeking their first win away from home, the Washington Wizards head into a road matchup with an opponent they have beaten five times in a row.
The Wizards will try to end their franchise-worst 0-16 road start Wednesday night when they meet the Philadelphia 76ers, who will seek to avenge two overtime losses to Washington this season.
According to NBA odds and oddsmakers from online sports book SBGGLOBAL.com have made the 76ers 7-point spread favorites for Wednesday’s game against the Wizards. Current NBA Public Betting Information shows that 74% of more than 205 bets for this game have been placed on the 76ers -7.
Washington (8-24) is tied for the ninth-worst road start in NBA history, the longest since the 2001-02 Chicago Bulls began 0-18. The Wizards are hoping for a breakthrough soon with their next four away games against losing teams in Philadelphia (13-21), Charlotte, Minnesota and Milwaukee.
“We’ve got to find a way to get a win on the road,” coach Flip Saunders said. “Even if we’re below average on the road, if we win a few games, we’re right there for the eighth, ninth or 10th spot fighting for something.”
Washington swept three meetings with Philadelphia in 2009-10 before the clubs played two thrilling overtime games this season. The Wizards won 116-115 in their home opener Nov. 2 and 116-114 on Nov. 23.
The 76ers blew late three-point leads in regulation both times.
Rookie John Wall fed Cartier Martin for a tying 3-pointer with 0.3 seconds left in the fourth quarter of the first meeting. In the second matchup, Wall was fouled 40 feet away from the basket as he fired up a shot and made all three free throws with 3.5 seconds left in the fourth.
The last meeting also featured bad blood, with Elton Brand getting ejected for a knockdown shove on Javale McGee after a dunk. Wall and Marreese Speights were given technicals for a chest-to-chest confrontation late in the contest.
“We played them twice – two nail-biters, one (with) kind of inopportune calls for them down the stretch as far as plays,” Saunders said. “So I think if we play hard, play error-free, turnover-free, rebound and defend, we’ll put ourselves in a position to win.”
The much-hyped matchup of Wall and Evan Turner, the top selections in the draft, was another subplot. Wall averaged 27.0 points and 9.5 assists while No. 2 pick Turner averaged 10.0 points.
Saunders has been forced to juggle his lineup because of injuries and the acquisition of Rashard Lewis from Orlando on Dec. 18. Josh Howard missed a 92-81 loss to New Orleans on Saturday with soreness in his left knee, while Kirk Hinrich has sat out two straight games with a bruised left thigh.
Hinrich and Yi Jianlian, out for eight of the last nine games due to a knee problem, returned to practice Monday. Howard was still out.
The Sixers are home for the first time since Dec. 17. They completed a 3-5 stretch of road games by shooting a season-low 34.1 percent in an 84-77 loss to the Hornets on Monday.
“We’ve been gone since (December) 18, for the most part,” Turner said. “It’s also that we have to stay focused mentally and switching from town to town and just going to different arenas and the different atmospheres and things like that.”
Philadelphia has its own injury woes, with Andre Iguodala missing the last four games because of recurring tendinitis in his right Achilles’. Starting center Spencer Hawes strained his back in warmups Monday and was replaced by Speights.
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