76ers head West, hope they don't go south

CHICAGO - The 76ers' grueling post-break schedule continues with a three-game Western swing that begins tomorrow night.

The Sixers, who lost to the Chicago Bulls, 122-90, on Saturday night, will play at Golden State tomorrow, at Phoenix on Wednesday, and at the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday.

In their next seven games, the Sixers will play just one opponent that is not holding a playoff spot: the Golden State Warriors.

Since returning from the all-star break, the Sixers have been blown out by the Bulls and Miami Heat, and have defeated the San Antonio Spurs.

With just 27 games remaining, the Sixers are 21-34, far back from the final playoff spot, which is held by the Charlotte Bobcats (27-27).

"We have three more games on this trip. We have two days of getting it back together, and we'll see what happens," Sixers coach Eddie Jordan said after the disappointing loss to Chicago. "We've gone through this before. Hopefully, we can get three out of three."

The Sixers did not practice yesterday.

After the loss Saturday, starting guard Allen Iverson said the team was determined to make the playoffs.

"Absolutely, we're going to go out and play as hard as we can every night and see what happens," he said. "As long as we lay it on the line. . . . It's important for us to give everything we've got, night in and night out, and not look forward."

The Sixers do not play again at the Wachovia Center until next Monday.

Injuries. Guard Willie Green and big man Jason Smith are listed as day to day. Green has not played since injuring a shoulder against the Heat on Tuesday. Smith has not played since spraining his right ankle against the Toronto Raptors on Feb. 10.