November 18, 2004 - 7:00 PM (EST)
San Antonio Spurs (6-1) Vs Philadelphia 76ers (4-4)
@Wachovia Center, Philadelphia, PA
Aired on:
and
Projected Starting Lineups:
STORYLINE: After struggling on Tuesday night with the perimeter shooting prowess of the Seattle Sonics, the 76ers now go into a two game stand where they play two of the game's better big men, which isn't exactly the remedy the Sixers want after watching a Sonics record 18 three pointers crack the cotton nets in the Wachovia Center. Tonight's game against the Spurs marks the third game of the season where the 76ers face off against one of the premier scoring Power Forwards in the game, in the previous two matchups they yielded 29 points and 10 rebounds to Amare Stoudemire, and 39 points and 9 rebounds for Jermaine O'Neal, if they let Tim Duncan even sniff those numbers the Sixers will be sent on the road to Miami hoping to come off a two game losing streak.
The job of checking Tim Duncan goes to starting center Marc Jackson, who no doubt will be given a good amount of help from the different characters on the Sixers roster. What maybe an even bigger worry for the 76ers is Manu Ginobili who will be faced against Willie Green, Manu is world reknown for being a sparkplug and he could very well be one of the most dangerous players in the open court. To neutralize Ginobili, the Sixers should give a hard long look at allowing rookie swingman Andre Iguodala to stay with the Olympic Gold Medal winner. The Spurs present a unique challenge for the Sixers, and how tight the Sixers play with them will go a long way in proving how they'll perform throughout the season. Unlike the Suns and Sonics (Sixers two Western conference opponents so far this season, both losses) the Spurs have a guy in Duncan who can dominate a game on either post, and is unselfish enough to allow his teammates to step up and win the game, players like Tony Parker, Brent Barry, and Brent Barry are all capable of benefitting from the collapsing defense on Duncan and draining shots from the perimeter.
If the 76ers want to win, they must win the defensive glass, and prevent the Spurs, who can be a really hot and cold team shooting, from getting many second chance shots, also Allen Iverson needs to be constantly aggressive and get Tony Parker in foul trouble, he'll make several illadvised reach-ins during the game. For the second straight game, the Sixers will definitely need a good performance from Kenny Thomas who's been MIA for the past couple of weeks.
KEY MATCHUP:
VS
INJURIES:
Spurs- Linton Johnson (ankle); Romain Sato (knee); Sean Marks (back)
76ers - Aaron McKie (shoulder); Glenn Robinson (ankle); Kedrick Brown (back).
STAT LEADERS:
Points: Duncan (Spurs) 22.3 PPG; Iverson (76ers) 26.4 PPG.
Rebounds: Duncan (Spurs) 14.1 RPG; Thomas (76ers) 7.6 RPG.
Assists: Parker (Spurs) 5.3 APG; Iverson (76ers) 7.6 APG.
Blocks: Duncan (Spurs) 2.57 BPG; Dalembert (76ers) 1.25 BPG.
Three Pointers: Ginobili (Spurs) 46% 3P%; Davis (76ers) 60% 3P%.
Personal Fouls: Nesterovic (Spurs) 3 PF; Korver (76ers) 3.9 PF.