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Saric gives Sixers a big lift in win over Wizards

76ers president Bryan Colangelo was basically asked Friday morning if his team was tanking. It seemed like an obvious question after the Sixers traded away their best shooter in Ersan Ilyasova and an accomplished rim-protector in Nerlens Noel.

Sixers' forward Dario Saric shoots over Wizards'  forward Otto Porter Jr. during Philadelphia's 120-112 win against Washington on Friday. Saric scored 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the victory.
Sixers' forward Dario Saric shoots over Wizards' forward Otto Porter Jr. during Philadelphia's 120-112 win against Washington on Friday. Saric scored 20 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the victory.Read moreSteven M. Falk / Staff photographer

76ers president Bryan Colangelo was basically asked Friday morning if his team was tanking.

It seemed like an obvious question after the Sixers traded away their best shooter in Ersan Ilyasova and an accomplished rim-protector in Nerlens Noel.

But Colangelo calmly looked the questioner in the eyes and said: "Dario Saric."

"He answered that question for us that he is capable of moving into a much more significant role," Colangelo added. "If you look at the path of our basketball team in the last month, month and a half, Dario has performed as even or above Ersan."

Friday night Saric made Colangelo seem like a prophet.

The power forward, who had been Ilyasova's backup, led the Sixers to a 120-112 upset over the Washington Wizards at the Wells Fargo Center. The rookie finished with 20 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and one steal in his first start since Feb. 2 at the San Antonio Spurs. This was just his 12th start of the season.

Saric said he tried to find his groove in the first 10 minutes. That led to him missing four of his five first-quarter attempts. However, Saric made all five of his second-quarter attempts to give him 12 points at the half.

"So I was into the game after 10 minutes," he said. "I'm happy I had a good game. But still I'm not shooting good enough from the three-point [distance]."

That was his only blemish, missing all four of his long-range attempts.

But he wasn't the only standout for the Sixers (22-35).

Small forward Robert Covington had a team-high 25 points, 11 rebounds, four steals and three assists. He made five three-pointers. Shooting guard Gerald Henderson had 10 points.

Richaun Holmes also proved that he can handle the larger role he's receiving due to Noel's trade. The second-year reserve center added 12 points, 10 rebounds and a game-high five blocks.

Meanwhile, center Jahlil Okafor had 11 points and two rebounds. Reserve shooting guard Nik Stauskas had 11 points and point guard T.J. McConnell added 10 points, eight assists, three turnovers and two steals.

Okafor had his right knee checked out in the x-ray room after the game. Then he received treatment in the training room. Okafor has been dealing with soreness throughout the season. The 21-year-old, who is restricted to playing 20-24 minutes, had season-ending corrective surgery for a torn meniscus last season.

The Sixers shot 49.4 percent from the field and scored 58 points in the paint. The game resembled a layup line for them. They shot 13 of 22 (59.1 percent) in the third quarter. Ten of those baskets came on layups or dunks.

"They were attacking us and putting their head down and beating us off the dribble that second and third quarter," Wizards coach Scott Brooks said. "That was the game. We couldn't stop penetration."

Their offensive production negated a combined 69 points by the Wizards guards. Shooting guard Bradley Beal finished with a game-high 40 points on 15-for-25 shooting. All-star point guard John Wall had 29 points, a game-high 14 assists, eight rebounds, two blocks and six turnovers. Center Marcin Gortat had 11 points and 11 rebounds.

The Wizards (34-22) entered the game with a four-game winning streak and had won 10 of their 11 games.

The Sixers were up by 22 points with 7 minutes, 4 seconds to play. Washington pulled within four points on a pair of Wall foul shots with 22.9 seconds remaining.

But Stauskas hit a pair of foul shots with 21.9 seconds left. On the ensuing possession, McConnell blocked Wall's shot and grabbed the defensive rebound. He passed the ball up court to Henderson, who went on to sink a pair of foul shots that gave the Sixers an eight-point margin with 7.7 seconds left.

"The biggest thing they do, they just play hard from start to finish no matter who's in the game," Beal said. "The coach will make sure their intensity is up 24-7."

Before the game, the Sixers were being criticized in some quarters for not getting what some viewed as equal value in the trades.

They acquired Tiago Splitter and a protected second-round pick from the Atlanta Hawks for Ilyasova on Wednesday. The Sixers also have the right to swap another second-rounder in June's draft.

Meanwhile, they acquired Justin Anderson and Andrew Bogut and top-18-protected first-round pick in June's draft from the Dallas Mavericks for Noel on Thursday. If the pick lands inside the first 18 slots, the Sixers will receive Dallas' second-round picks in the 2017 and 2020 drafts.

Noel, who had been the Sixers backup center, is scheduled to become a restricted free agent this summer. He is expected to command a lot of money in free agency. The Sixers did not want to match a lucrative offer to keep someone they deemed as a reserve.

As for Ilyasova, the Sixers offered him a one-year deal past this season. However, the power forward wanted multiple years. So the team decided to trade him instead of not receiving anything while losing him in free agency.

"As we move forward, there are a lot of bright things on the horizon," Colangelo said. "We are experiencing a lot of brightness right now."

He pointed out that the Sixers' young core - which includes Saric and Holmes - is getting better.

"We are moving forward to the future," Colangelo said, "and the future is closer than many people realize."

Anderson did not see any action against the Wizards.

kpompey@phillynews.com

@PompeyOnSixers

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