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Sixers hope to rebound from ugly loss in Charlotte

Jan 20, 2011 - 3:52 PM (Sports Network) - The Philadelphia 76ers and Charlotte Bobcats will square off for the second time in four days when the two clubs meet in the Queen City on Thursday.

The Sixers outlasted the Bobcats, 96-92, in the City of Brotherly Love during a Martin Luther King Day matinee on Monday when Lou Williams finished with 23 points, including a three-pointer to send the game into overtime.

Boris Diaw finished with his sixth career triple-double, scoring 25 while grabbing 11 rebounds and dishing out 11 assists for the Bobcats.

Most recently the Sixers suffered another all too familiar heartbreaking defeat last night in Orlando. Despite leading by four points with just 22.1 seconds remaining in regulation, Philadelphia allowed a four-point play by Jason Richardson in the waning seconds that deadlocked things, and yet another four-pointer in overtime by J.J. Redick that proved to be the difference in a 99-98 setback.

Both foul calls were shaky and the Sixers' Andre Iguodala was left searching for answers.

"We can't let [things] boil down to that, then maybe we will get a little more respect down the stretch," the swingman said . "I don't know if we earned that respect or not. We play hard every night [yet] we never get it."

Williams finished with 19 points and seven rebounds in a reserve role for the Sixers, who saw a brief two-game winning streak come to an end. Thaddeus Young also came off the bench and ended with 17 points and five boards.

Jrue Holiday chipped in with 16 points, eight rebounds and six assists for Philadelphia, which has lost four in a row on the road. Iguodala added 15 points, seven boards and six assists.

"Sometimes you're on the winning end of that and sometimes you're on the losing end of that," Williams said. "They made two incredible plays."

Charlotte, meanwhile, bounced back for its loss in Philly a day later in Chicago when D.J. Augustin led a balanced Bobcats attack with 15 points and five assists, as Charlotte topped the Bulls, 83-82, at the United Center.

Gerald Wallace grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds to go along with 13 points, while both Stephen Jackson and Diaw added 12 points apiece for Charlotte, which snapped a three-game skid and is now 7-5 since Paul Silas replaced Larry Brown as coach on Dec. 22.

"Gerald was terrific [against the Bulls]," Silas told the Bobcats' website. "He was great offensively and defensively. We are also getting more confident as a team. We're running better and that is helping us get easy baskets."

The Sixers, who have lost five straight in Charlotte, are currently tied with Indiana for the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference playoff picture with the Bobcats just one-half game back.

Philly has, however, already beaten Charlotte twice in Wells Fargo Center this season and will be shooting to sweep the three-game season series tonight.