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Sixers hand Bobcats 15th straight loss

Feb 14, 2012 - 4:45 AM Charlotte, NC (Sports Network) - Lou Williams scored 23 points and fellow reserve Thaddeus Young added 20 to help the Philadelphia 76ers down the struggling Charlotte Bobcats, 98-89, on Monday.

Kemba Walker nearly carried the Bobcats to a comeback win by scoring 14 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter, but it ultimately came up short to extend Charlotte's club-record losing streak to 15.

"It's a loss, but we played hard. We want to continue playing like that," Walker said. "If we can play like this tonight, there's no reason we can't play like this every night."

Nikola Vucevic contributed to the Sixers' solid bench effort with eight points and 10 rebounds, while Jrue Holiday scored 19 points in the victory, Philly's second straight.

Corey Maggette had a season-high 22 points for the Bobcats, who have not won since beating Golden State on January 14.

Charlotte, still playing without its starting backcourt of D.J. Augustin (toe) and Gerald Henderson (hamstring), trailed 55-45 at halftime but used a late 11-1 run in the third quarter to cut the deficit to four.

A Matt Carroll three-pointer in the final minute pulled the hosts as close as two, 69-67, though the Sixers scored eight straight points spanning the end of the third and start of the fourth quarter.

The Bobcats continued to stay within striking distance, but never got over the hump. Near the midway point of the fourth, Walker drained three-pointers on consecutive trips to get Charlotte within 81-79, only to have Williams answer with a three-pointer at the other end.

Philadelphia still led by five entering the final minute, and an inside bucket by Vucevic and deep three-pointer by Williams sealed the win, the Sixers' first in Charlotte since January 26, 2008.

"Williams hitting that big three against the [shot] clock was the dagger," Sixers head coach Doug Collins said.

Holiday made all five of his field goal attempts in the opening frame, including a three-pointer that ignited a quarter-ending 13-5 run.

The Sixers led 28-17 entering the second and held their biggest lead, 35-20, after Williams converted a three-point play less than three minutes in.

Game Notes

The Sixers improved to 20-9. They did not earn their 20th win last season until game No. 45...Andre Iguodala, Philadelphia's All-Star representative, had nine assists, but shot just 1-for-6 for three points...Reggie Williams and Byron Mullens scored 14 and 13 points, respectively, for Charlotte, which committed 15 turnovers to Philadelphia's seven...The home team in this series had won five straight and eight of the previous nine.