'Best' and 'Worst' awards: Sixers vs. Mavs
DALLAS – My look at some of the best and worst performances and happenings from the Dallas Mavericks' 97-94 victory over the 76ers on Monday at American Airlines Center.
Best performance: I had to give this to Monta Ellis even though he didn't attempt a shot in the first quarter and only had five points at the half. The Mavs guard, however, scored points when his team needed them the most. Ellis scored 19 of his team-high 24 points after intermission. He also had a game-high 10 assists and two blocks.
Worst performance: Until he heated up, Thaddeus Young was the leading candidate to receive this award. But in the end, Jae Crowder got the honor. The Dallas center, who started in place of former Sixer Samuel Dalembert, looked like he should have remained on the bench. He scored two points on 1-for-8 shooting. The second-year player out of Marquette missed all five of his three-point attempts and had three turnovers.
Best defensive performance: This award goes to Spencer Hawes. The Sixers center finished with three blocked shots while constantly providing a defensive presence. He also finished with 11 rebounds – nine defensive – and a steal.
Best performance on the losing team: Evan Turner had to get this one. The Sixers swingman erased memories of scoring a season-low four points against the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday. On Monday, the Eastern Conference All-Star candidate finished with a game-high 26 points to go with nine rebounds and seven assists.
Worst statistic: This goes to the Sixers' foul shooting. They made just 12 of 22 foul shots (54.5 percent). They only made 3 of 8 in the fourth quarter.
Best statistic: This goes to Dallas' second-half foul shooting. The Mavs made 13 of 14 foul shots (92.9 percent).
Worst of the Worst: This had to go to the Sixers inability to make layups. They missed 10 layups en route to shooting 38.4 percent from the field. Five of those misses came in the fourth quarter. Missed layups and poor foul shooting cost them the game.
- Keith Pompey
Follow and contact Inquirer 76ers beat writer Keith Pompey on Twitter@PompeyOnSixers