Sixers playing the game of the bleak

76ers fans must be having this thought today: If their team can't beat a squad that was 4-15 on the road and missing its leading scorer, when will that first win of 2008 come?

The Sixers lost, 87-83, last night to a Milwaukee Bucks team that was without leading scorer Michael Redd, who has a bruised left quadriceps.

Then again, the Sixers were without their shooting touch, going 0 for 13 from three-point range.

With a schedule that includes only one sub-.500 team (Chicago) in the next two weeks, the immediate prospects do not look bright; not that the past ones have been that promising, either.

   - Marc Narducci