76ers at Knicks
The woeful Philadelphia 76ers and resurgent New York Knicks meet up Wednesday in the Big Apple, and amazingly it is the Knicks who are on a losing streak. The 76ers snapped their 18-game slide to begin the season with a 103-91 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday, riding 14 3-pointers to their first victory in a span of 29 games dating to last season.
The win overshadowed Kobe Bryant's final game in his hometown of Philadelphia. The Knicks have followed up their 8-6 start with a four-game skid, the latest of which - a 116-111 overtime setback against Houston on Sunday - came with leading scorer Carmelo Anthony sidelined due to an illness. Rookie Kristaps Porzingis continued his outstanding early-season run with 20 points and 13 rebounds in 41 minutes as New York fell to 3-6 at home. The Knicks have won three straight meetings with the 76ers at Madison Square Garden and haven't lost a season series to Philadelphia since the 2008-09 season.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, CSN Philadelphia, MSG (New York)
ABOUT THE 76ERS (1-18): The squad's initial victory coincided with a solid return for Nerlens Noel, who had missed the previous two games with knee issues. He finished with 14 points, nine rebounds and a season-high three assists in 26 minutes off the bench, spearheading a group of reserves that outscored Los Angeles' substitutes by a 40-22 margin. Noel averaged 18 points on 56.4 percent shooting and 11.7 rebounds in three games against New York last season.
ABOUT THE KNICKS (8-10): Anthony was present for the first three games of New York's slide, which were decided by an average of 15 points, but absent when the team took a lead into the final minute of regulation against Houston. He returned to practice Tuesday and will likely push Lance Thomas back into a reserve role while cutting into Arron Afflalo's role. The latter erupted for a season-high 31 points on 13-of-19 shooting in Sunday's loss.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. 76ers SF Robert Covington is averaging 18.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4.3 steals over a six-game span.
2. Philadelphia has dropped 15 in a row on the road dating back to a win in Denver last March.
3. Porzingis is averaging four blocks over his last five games.