Sixers' Turner sharp in 86-82 playoff win over Heat

So much of Evan Turner's rookie season with the 76ers has been about confidence. It has been missing for long stretches, and as this playoff series with the Miami Heat has shown, it can fluctuate from game to game.

Turner had the signature moment of his young career, collecting 17 points and seven rebounds in just over 27 minutes Sunday as the Sixers extended their season with an 86-82 win over the Heat in Game 4 of their playoff series at the Wells Fargo Center.

The Sixers will travel to Miami for Game 5 on Wednesday, trailing by three games to one but still with a pulse.

In a way, the postseason has mirrored Turner's regular season. He enjoyed two strong games this series and wasn't much of a factor in two others.

With Thaddeus Young having his second straight subpar game off the bench (two points in 19 minutes), Sixers coach Doug Collins needed another reserve to step up, which Turner did.

Collins said he had to make a decision, when Miami went with a small lineup, on whether to counter with Turner or Young. On this day, he made the right call.

"I just thought Evan was playing really well and so I had Evan on the floor," Collins said. "He did a wonderful job."

Turner made an impression on the opposition.

"He is aggressive and is playing with confidence and is a talented young player," Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said.

Turner played more than 10 minutes in the fourth quarter and had four points and four rebounds.

The Sixers trailed by 82-76 after Dwyane Wade's tip-in with 1 minute, 35 seconds left. Then Turner and the Sixers closed the game with a 10-0 run.

Turner was at the front and back end of the run, beginning things with an 11-foot runner and ending them by hitting two free throws with 2.3 seconds left.

"I was trying to come out and be ready for the team," said Turner, who credited Saturday's one-on-one games with Andre Iguodala after practice with helping him. "I saw Andre out with a few early fouls, and I just wanted to come out and compete and give some spark off the bench."

By halftime, Turner had nine points, hitting 4 of 6 shots.

"Any time you come out and hit your first three shots, it definitely helps your confidence," said Turner, who actually hit three of his first four shots, missing his second attempt. "I am not worried about missing."

The key for Turner is sustaining the effort. His other big performance in this series was Game 2, with 15 points in nearly 26 minutes of a 94-73 loss.

In the other two playoff games, Turner totaled four points in nearly 16 minutes.

This has been a rocky season for Turner, the No. 2 overall selection in the NBA draft out of Ohio State. It all comes back to confidence.

"As I have been saying all year, he is a confidence guy," said Iguodala, who had his best game of the series with 16 points. "His confidence was up today."

So was his overall production. In addition to scoring, Turner had to frequently guard LeBron James, especially with Iguodala finishing with five fouls.

For Turner, there was a lot to savor by having such an integral role.

"The first playoff victory is a mark for me and Jrue [Holiday]," Turner said. "Just to see how hard it is to win in the playoffs and what you have to do."

It starts by playing with confidence.