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Durant leads Thunder into Philly

Mar 9, 2011 - 4:04 PM (Sports Network) - Kevin Durant, the NBA's leading scorer, will lead his Oklahoma City Thunder into the City of Brotherly Love tonight for a showdown against the improving Philadelphia 76ers from the Wells Fargo Center.

Durant is averaging 28.1 ppg this season for the Northwest Division-leading Thunder, who had a three-game winning streak come to an end with Monday's 107-101 setback at Memphis. Durant scored 23 points and Russell Westbrook ended with 27 for Oklahoma City, losers in four of its last seven games.

"Our defensive effort wasn't where it needed to be," Thunder head coach Scott Brooks said of his team's first half effort.

James Harden and Serge Ibaka scored 16 and 14 points, respectively, in a losing effort. The Thunder fell to 17-14 away from the OKC this season, and sit three games ahead of both Denver and Portland in the division.

The Thunder are also fourth in the Western Conference standings.

Philadelphia has been on a roll lately, going 30-17 since a dreadful 3-13 start under first-year head coach Doug Collins. It has won three in a row and seven of eight games, including last night's 110-100 victory in Indiana.

Thaddeus Young had 18 points and nine rebounds, Andre Iguodala ended with 16 points, 10 assists, and four rebounds after consecutive triple-double efforts and Jrue Holiday netted 16 points for Philadelphia, which is three games over .500 for the first time this season and sits just a half-game behind the New York Knicks for the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference.

"Our starters have been starting really slow and tonight was huge for us because we got our defense set," Collins said. "Iguodala was fantastic."

Jodie Meeks added 15 points for a Sixers squad that shot 51.1 percent and forced 19 turnovers for 17 points. Philadelphia is headed back to Wells Fargo Center, where it began the season 1-4 but has gone 20-6 since.

The Sixers will also welcome the Atlantic Division-rival Boston Celtics to south Philly on Friday.

Oklahoma City downed the 76ers, 109-103, on Nov. 10 this season at home behind 31 points from both Durant and Westbrook. The Thunder have won four in a row against Philadelphia after losing the previous five matchups.