Sixers coach says Game 4 is a 'human nature' test

If for no other reason than because it's what they've done all season, 76ers coach Doug Collins expects his guys to play well on Sunday.

After Friday's practice, Collins called Sunday's elimination game - the Sixers trail the Miami Heat, three games to none, in this best-of-seven series - a "human nature" test.

"Are you going to let human nature take over when the game gets tough and say, 'We're down 0-3, how bad do you want to go back to Miami?' " Collins said.

Collins believes he knows how his players will respond.

"I just told our guys, 'Let's just give ourselves a chance to do everything we can and play a Game 5 in Miami,' " Collins said.

Collins and his coaching staff watched film for about four hours before Friday's practice. They spliced the game tape into 16 clips of offensive rebounds and 10 clips of fourth-quarter field goals scored by the Heat. Collins relayed the statistics: Seven of those 10 field goals came with less than five seconds remaining on the shot clock.

Translation?

The Sixers defense was good; it just failed in the "moment of truth."

A failed box-out on Dwyane Wade, a lowered hand on LeBron James' early three-pointer, or late help along the baseline.

"It wasn't any plays that beat us - it was playing through the shot clock . . ." Collins said. "When that ball goes up, everyone [needs to be] seeking a body and creating contact and coming up with that ball."

Friday's film session was another in a long week of patching continuous leaks, all of them created by Miami's uber-talented roster. Each of the series' first three games has included at least one lopsided statistic: rebounding, or free throws, or field-goal percentage.

Thursday's demon was offensive rebounding. Miami grabbed 20, scoring 24 second-chance points and essentially killing any chance the Sixers had for a victory.

Sunday's game is set for a 1 p.m. tip-off at the Wells Fargo Center.

"Coach has seen guys who've been in a lot of series get down and kind of bail out," Sixers power forward Elton Brand said. "But the team I'm playing with, these are guys who haven't been there. They're excited to play; they're ready to play."

Even if Sunday is their last game, players such as Jrue Holiday, Jodie Meeks, Spencer Hawes, and Thaddeus Young likely will go out scrambling.

"That's the good thing about having a young group," swingman Andre Iguodala said. "They just have that natural energy, and they're too goofy to know the situation, so they're always excited to play the game."

Letdown. Through the series' first three games, Iguodala has contributed 19 points (4 in Game 1, 5 in Game 2, and 10 in Game 3). Battling right knee tendinitis for the final quarter of the season, Iguodala looked especially ineffective on Thursday night, when the Heat occasionally used stars James and Wade to guard other players instead of Iguodala.

In this series, Iguodala has shot 7 for 25 from the floor, 1 for 8 from three-point range, and 4 for 6 from the line. He's averaging 6.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 8.7 assists. Iguodala is tied with rookie Evan Turner for sixth on the team in playoff scoring.

Quote of the day. From Collins, talking about Thursday night's game: "Last night was the first time that I did this, but during the national anthem, I looked around and I saw the stands filled. I saw 'playoffs' on the floor. I saw my guys and it's what I wanted to have happen for our team. I wanted the fans to love their team. I wanted the crowd to be in it from the start. I wanted to be in the playoffs, and I wanted our guys to be able to enjoy this and understand what this is all about. Last night was the first time I really took the time . . . that's why I want to keep it going. I just love what our guys have done. I just looked at that crowd, and on opening night, they were there to see the Miami Heat, and last night, they were there to see us."