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"Best" and "Worst" awards: Sixers vs. Hawks

    by Keith Pompey, The Philadelphia Inquirer
    Published 

ATLANTA – My look at some of the best and worst performances and happenings from the Atlanta Hawks' 113-103 victory over the Sixers on Friday at Philips Arena:

Best performance: I had to go with Jeff Teague. The Hawks would not have won the game without his second-half heroics. The point guard scored 23 of his game-high 33 points after intermission. His best sequence came after the Sixers pulled within four points early in the fourth quarter. The Hawks responded with a 12-2 run. Teague scored eight  of those points. He also finished the game with 10 assists, one steal and four turnovers in 34 minutes, 52 seconds.

Worst performance:  I had to give this award to James Anderson. The Sixers guard finished with two points one game after scoring a career-high 36. On Friday, Anderson shot 1-for-6 from the field and was 0-for-4 on three-pointers. He only attempted two shots in the fourth quarter. Some might argue his lack of production had to do with teammates freezing him out. They have a legitimate point. However, Anderson should have been more aggressive and demanding of the ball.

Best defensive performance: Al Horford gets this award. The Hawks power forward had a game-high three blocked shots to go with 20 points, a steal and eight rebounds. Seven of his boards came on the defensive end.

Best performance in a losing effort: As much as I considered Evan Turner, I had to give the award to Tony Wroten. While Turner finished with a team-high 27 points, he produced a game-worst seven turnovers. Wroten, meanwhile, had another productive performance while starting in place of Michael Carter-Williams. The point guard finished with 22 points and a team-high six assists.

Worst statistic: You have to give this to the Sixers' first-quarter three-pointer shooting. They shot 1-for-8 (12.5 percent) from the beyond the arc in the opening quarter. The Sixers missed their first seven.

Best statistic: This award goes to Teague's free-throw shooting. He made 12 of 13 (92.3 percent) from the foul line.

Worst of the Worst:  This award goes to the Hawks' lack of fan support. The listed attendance was 12,070. It wasn't even close. There were plenty of empty seats in this arena.

Follow and contact Inquirer 76ers beat writer Keith Pompey on Twitter @PompeyOnSixers