Sixers Win Streak Ends at 1

By Doug Ammon, Sixers.com 

On Saturday, the Sixers looked to double their win total with a victory over Oklahoma City, but a newly healthy Thunder team proved to be too much as Philadelphia fell 103-91.

Russell Westbrook led all scorers with 27 points, while Robert Covington led Philadelphia with 21.

MCW Making Double-Doubles a Habit

For the third time in four games, Michael Carter-Williams registered a double-double, this time with 16 points and 14 helpers. His assist total was two shy of the career-high mark he set against the Mavericks on November 29.

The reigning Rookie of the Year has seen a serious increase in minutes with both Tony Wroten (knee) and Alexey Shved (hip) sidelined in Philadelphia’s last two games. He played a game-high 42 on Friday, two nights after logging 43 in an 85-77 win over the Timberwolves. Carter-Williams has tallied seven or more assists in each of the last five games for Philly, notching 54 total over that stretch.

Emergence of Robert Covington

Robert Covington has come out of nowhere to provide a massive spark for the Sixers in each of their last two games. The undrafted forward out of Tennessee State had logged just 40 total minutes during a four-game stretch from November 24 to December 1. Against the Timberwolves on the third, he played 31 minutes and scored 17 points (5/13 FG), including a team-high nine in the fourth quarter.

On Friday, he played 28 minutes off the bench and scored a team-high 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting against the Thunder. Before the game, Sixers head coach Brett Brown mentioned that Covington’s role could increase moving forward, and the second-year man has backed up his coach’s praise.

Next Up

Immediately following Friday’s game, the Sixers hopped on a plane to travel to Detroit ahead of a Saturday evening meeting with the Pistons. Detroit is 3-16 on the season and is coming off a 102-109 defeat at the hands of the Boston Celtics on Wednesday.