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Miller stars again as 76ers defeat Hawks

Jan 28, 2007 - 4:00 AM ATLANTA (Ticker) -- Andre Miller is enjoying his best stretch of the season, and so are the Philadelphia 76ers.

Miller scored 10 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter as the 76ers held off the Atlanta Hawks, 104-89, for their fourth victory in six games.

Andre Iguodala scored 24 points for the Sixers (14-31), who have climbed out of the Atlantic Division cellar with their best six-game showing of what has been a disappointing season.

"I think we're starting to play better together," Iguodala said. "We're coming together with each other and guys are wanting to sacrifice for each other."

Philadelphia trailed for just 26 seconds early in the contest, grabbing a 27-18 lead after one period and never looking back as it improved to 2-0 vs. Atlanta this season. The Hawks pulled within a point in the third quarter and trailed just 77-75 after a dunk by Marvin Williams with 9:59 to play before Miller took charge, fueling a 15-2 run.

The point guard made a pair of jumpers around a runner to extend the margin to 83-75 and added a driving layup for an 87-75 bulge with 7:20 left. A thunderous dunk by Iguodala that planted Hawks guard Tyronn Lue to the floor capped the surge at 92-77 with 6:14 to play.

Acquired in December in the deal that sent Allen Iverson to Denver, Miller had his seventh career triple-double in Friday's loss to Cleveland. He flirted again with those figures, collecting eight assists and seven rebounds before ducking out early to visit with family.

"(Miller) hit about four big shots (in the fourth)," Igoudala said. "He got rebounds and he distributed the ball. He got some good shots and created a spurt."

"It's like he took the team on his back and he made big-time plays down the stretch for them," Hawks coach Mike Woodson said. "You expect that from him."

Samuel Dalembert had 19 points, 10 rebounds and seven blocks for the Sixers, who had five scorers in double figures and shot 54 percent (39-of-72) from the field. Philadelphia had 11 blocks and limited Atlanta to 40 percent (31-of-77) shooting.

"For Samuel to have seven blocked shots and no fouls is amazing," Sixers coach Maurice Cheeks said. "That's a heck of a ride to have 10 rebounds and seven blocks. He also had 19 points on top of that, so he had a great game."

Josh Smith had 21 points and 10 boards for the Hawks, who overcame double-digit deficits to win their last two games but could not do it again.

"It's frustrating when you come home and play in front of your fans, you want to play well," Woodson said. "From the beginning to the end, we just didn't have it."

Philadelphia, which blew a 17-point lead to Cleveland on Friday, shot 57 percent (21-for-37) in the first half and took a 55-48 lead into the break.

Smith's jumper cut the deficit to 62-61 with 6:50 left in the third quarter, but Miller followed with two free throws to trigger a 6-0 spurt. Three minutes later, Williams nailed two free throws to make it 70-68, but Iguodola answered with a jumper.

Before Philadelphia's clinching run, Atlanta had a chance to tie after Dalembert was called for traveling. But Smith missed a wide-open jumper.

"We bounced back tonight," Cheeks said. "This is a good step in the right direction. We got big stops tonight and I think that was key for us."

Steven Hunter scored a season-high 15 points and Kyle Korver added 11 for Philadelphia, which outscored Atlanta, 26-12, in fast-break points.