Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Sixers continue climb toward .500; rout Wizards

Philadelphia - Jrue Holiday scored 20 points to pace a balanced Philadelphia attack as the Sixers returned from the All-Star break in fine fashion, blitzing lowly Washington, 117-94, at Wells Fargo Center.

Thaddeus Young added 18 points and 10 rebounds off the bench for the Sixers, who have won two in a row and four out of five to move within one game of the .500 mark after starting the season 3-13.

Elton Brand and Elton Turner each scored 15 pints while Marreese Speights had 14 and seven boards for Philadelphia, which broke open the game with a strong third quarter, outscoring the Wizards 34-15 in the frame.

Jodie Meeks contributed 12 points and Andre Iguodala stuffed the stat sheet with 10 points, seven rebounds and five assists as Doug Collins was able to rest his starters for the majority of the fourth quarter.

Rookie star John Wall had 21 points and 12 assists for Washington, which is a dismal 1-27 on the road this season. Trevor Booker also netted 21 points on 9-of-10 shooting off the bench while Andray Blatche had 16 and Nick Young finished with 15.

Shortly before the game ended, the Wizards announced they had traded guard Kirk Hinrich and forward Hilton Armstrong to the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for guards Mike Bibby and Jordan Crawford, swingman Maurice Evans and a first- round pick in the 2011 NBA Draft.

The NBA's trade deadline is 3 p.m. (et) on Thursday.

Before the game, Sixers president Rod Thorn said his team might do something "minor" but not to expect a splash. Of course, two of the Sixers' Atlantic Division rivals have already made major moves this week with New York acquiring four-time All-Star forward Carmelo Anthony and New Jersey netting an All-Star of its own in point guard Deron Williams.

Six Shots:

*The Sixers topped their win total of last season when they finished 27-55.

*Philadelphia is 7-3 this month, clinching a winning mark for the third straight month, the first time they have done that since the 2000-01 season.

*The Sixers are 8-2 this season when Jrue Holiday scored 20-plus points.

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