After capturing their third win of the season by defeating the Orlando Magic 96-88 on Sunday night, the Sixers will stay in the sunshine state and get set for a meeting tonight in the American Airlines Arena versus the 13-15 Miami Heat. Sunday night in Orlando gave the Sixers hope as they began their seven game road trip with a win, highlighted by Michael Carter-Williams who led the way with 21 points after having a little altercation with Nerlens Noel, but the disagreement led to good basketball from both as Noel notched a double-double, providing 13 points and 12 rebounds. It has been a weird season so far for the Sixers. 0-14 at home but for some reason, when this team isn’t at the Wells Fargo Center, they play inspiring basketball. They are 3-9 on the road which is really difficult to figure out but it could be great news for Brett Brown and his boys as they get set for game two of the seven game road swing. They seem to play much better defense when on the road, only allowing 97.3 points per game compared to the 108.5 they give up on average back home. Their defensive efforts were on display in Orlando Sunday night proving the defensive statistics to be true by only surrendering 88 points to the Magic. If the defense can get off to a solid start again tonight, expect the momentum to build and the Sixers to push the Heat to their limit.
As for the Heat, they are 1-0 versus the Sixers this season following a 114-96 victory over Philadelphia at the Wells Fargo Center back on November 1st. Chris Bosh led the Heat throughout that game notching 30 points and completely annihilating the Sixers defense. In more recent news, the Heat have been struggling at the American Airlines Arena before Sunday, when they snapped their five game home losing streak by defeating the Boston Celtics, 100-84. Mario Chalmers sparked the Heat with 11 points along with 10 assists, leading him to his fourth double-double of the season. Free agent signing Luol Deng contributed to the win by providing 23 points and the Miami bench came up in the clutch, led by James Ennis who accumulated 16 of Miami’s 33 bench points in the win. The main focus of concern with the Heat this season has been their lack of offensive production. They’ve been averaging only 94.5 points per game and the injuries to Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh are not helping that cause. Head Coach Erik Spoelstra has already used 13 different starting lineup combinations. He’s been trying everything and nothing seems to light a fire under his offense. If Wade is able to play I don’t think he will provide much statistically for Miami and with the way the Sixers play defense on the road and Miami’s offensive struggles, Tuesday’s game should stay close and should be a winnable game for the Sixers.
Game Notes
- When these two teams met earlier this season, Wade and Bosh combined for 39 points and 14 assists and were a combined +23 while on the floor.
- The Heat are 9-1 in their last 10 home games versus the Sixers.
- Sixers look to achieve two consecutive wins for the first time this season.
- The Sixers have committed 17 or more turnovers in 9 straight games.
- On November 1st Wade and Bosh combined for 39 points and 14 assists torching the Sixers.
Injury Report
Sixers
Hollis Thompson (Upper Respiratory Infection) – OUT
Furkan Aldemir (Right Foot Plantar Fasciitis) – OUT
Ronny Turiaf (Arthroscopic Surgery, Right Hip) – OUT
Joel Embiid (Right Foot Injury) – OUT
Jason Richardson (Left Knee Injury) – OUT
Heat
Dwyane Wade (Right Knee Contusion) – QUESTIONABLE
Hassan Whiteside (Left Toe) – QUESTIONABLE
Chris Bosh (Strained Left Calf) – OUT
Josh McRoberts (Right Meniscus Tear) – OUT
Justin Hamilton (Concussion) – OUT
Projected Starters
Sixers
PG- Michael Carter-Williams
SG- JaKarr Sampson
SF- Robert Covington
PF- Luc Richard Mbah a Moute
C- Nerlens Noel
Heat
PG- Norris Cole
SG- Mario Chalmers
SF- Luol Deng
PF- Shawne Williams
C- Chris Anderson
Prediction: Bosh is definitely out but no official word on Wade yet. Even if he suits up I don’t expect him to contribute much. Hey, the Sixers play defense on the road and the Heat are going to have touble scoring, so I think this is the night we get a winning streak going! 92-86 Sixers!
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