The Philadelphia 76ers equaled the record for the worst losing streak in NBA history on Wednesday, suffering a last-gasp defeat against the Boston Celtics to chalk up their 26th consecutive loss.
The 76ers led heading into the final minutes, but were overhauled by a late rally from the Celtics, who scraped home 84-80 as Philadelphia’s miserable campaign continued.
Jae Crowder sank a three-pointer with 38.5 seconds left on the clock as Boston produced an 18-3 rally to win having trailed by 11 points midway through the third quarter.
Photo: AP
Philadelphia had led 80-75 with 2 minutes, 51 seconds left in the game, only to watch as Boston reeled off the final nine points of the match to snatch the victory.
The 76ers were left ruing an inability to preserve possession when it counted, finishing with 19 turnovers.
“There’s no excuse for that,” former Celtics guard Phil Pressey said.
The 76ers are now 0-16 for the season and combined with 10 straight losses last year now have a share of the record for the worst string of defeats in NBA history.
The 2013-2014 76ers were the last side to lose 26 straight, a feat emulated by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2010-2011.
Two more defeats in their next games against Houston today and Memphis on Sunday would take them to 0-18, equaling the worst ever start to an NBA season, set by the New Jersey Nets in 2009-2010.
The 76ers’ last win in a regular-season game came against the Denver Nuggets in March.
Isaiah Thomas was the star for the Celtics, pouring on 30 points and six assists in a virtuoso display as Boston improved to 8-7.
The only bright spark for the 76ers was the continued good form of center Jahlil Okafor, his team’s top scorer with 19 points.
More worrying though for the 76ers, it was the third match in a row in which they failed to capitalize on an early lead.
They led Boston 47-40 at halftime, having squandered a 47-32 lead against Miami and a 52-46 advantage against Minnesota.
Elsewhere on Wednesday, LeBron James scored 24 points to pass another milestone, but it was not enough to prevent the Cleveland Cavaliers tumbling to a 103-99 loss to the Toronto Raptors.
James passed Reggie Miller to move into 18th place in the all-time NBA scoring list with a free throw on his sixth point of the game.
However James’ points benchmark was a footnote to a polished performance by Toronto, with guard Kyle Lowry outstanding with a 27-point haul.
It was the third win in a row for the Raptors, who improved to 10-6 as their Eastern Conference rivals fell to 11-4.
“I didn’t play well, they were the better team,” James said afterwards, brushing off suggestions that injuries and fatigue had caught up with Cleveland. “Not an excuse. We need to hold each other more accountable. We’ve got to play better and we will, but I don’t think we improved tonight.”
However, Cavs coach David Blatt was adamant that his side were suffering from fatigue.
“I thought we ran out of gas,” Blatt said. “I thought fatigue played a big part of it... It’s not an excuse, just an observation. We’ve got to do the job with the guys that are out there.”
Meanwhile, Kevin Durant’s smooth return from injury continued as the Oklahoma City Thunder swept away the Brooklyn Nets 110-99 in Oklahoma.
Durant, playing only his second game since returning from a hamstring strain, piled up 30 points in a decisive win for the Thunder, a third consecutive victory which saw them move to 10-6.
Durant sunk 11 of 18 shots from the field, while contributing five assists and six rebounds.
Russell Westbrook added 27 points, 13 assists and six rebounds.
In Minneapolis, Minnesota, Zach LaVine had 18 points, six assists and five rebounds in place of the injured Ricky Rubio as the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Atlanta Hawks 99-95 to sweep the season series.
Rubio first tweaked his left ankle on Monday night against Philadelphia and tried to play through it, but another spill in the second quarter ultimately limited him to 21 minutes.
Andrew Wiggins scored 15 points on five-for-17 shooting for the Wolves, who won their second home game in a row after an 0-6 start at the Target Center. The Wolves entered the night last in three-point field goals, but went nine for 21 against the Hawks.
Paul Millsap had 22 points and 10 rebounds, while Jeff Teague scored 22 points for the Hawks, but Atlanta shot just 37.8 percent from the floor and 25 percent on threes for their fifth loss in seven games.
In San Antonio, Texas, Kawhi Leonard scored 26 points as the San Antonio Spurs beat the Dallas Mavericks 88-83.
LaMarcus Aldridge had 18 points and seven rebounds in his return from a two-game absence because of a mild left-ankle sprain. Tony Parker added 16 points and eight assists as the Spurs improved to 12-3 with their third straight victory.
Wes Matthews had 15 points and Dirk Nowitzki added 13 for Dallas.
Devin Harris’ three-pointer cut San Antonio’s lead to 84-83 with 33 seconds remaining, but Leonard followed with his own three-pointer just 18 seconds later.
Matthews then missed a three and Manu Ginobili went one for four on free throws to close out the Spurs’ eighth straight home victory.
In Charlotte, North Carolina, Jeremy Lamb had 18 points and seven rebounds, while Nicolas Batum added 16 points and 11 assists as the Charlotte Hornets closed with a 25-2 run to beat the Washington Wizards 101-87.
The Hornets overcame a late nine-point deficit and set a franchise record by holding the Wizards to six points in the fourth quarter.
Charlotte ran their home winning streak to seven and have won five of six overall to improve to 9-6.
Kemba Walker, coming off a 39-point game on Monday night in Charlotte’s overtime win over Sacramento, added 16 points, while Marvin Williams and Al Jefferson each had 14 points and 11 rebounds.
Marcin Gortat led Washington with 17 points and 12 rebounds, while Bradley Beal also had 17 points.
In Houston, Texas, Jeff Green scored 20 points and Courtney Lee had 10 of his 17 in the fourth quarter to help the Memphis Grizzlies beat the struggling Houston Rockets 102-93.
Houston have lost three straight to drop to 5-10 overall, and 1-3 since coach Kevin McHale was fired and replaced by J.B. Bickerstaff.
James Harden had 40 points for the Rockets.
The Grizzlies led for most of the game, despite playing without Zach Randolph, who missed his fourth straight game with soreness in his right knee.
In Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Rudy Gay scored 36 points as the Sacramento Kings beat the Milwaukee Bucks for their second road victory of the season.
Sacramento scoring and rebounding leader DeMarcus Cousins sat out the game because of a strained lower back. The Kings had lost all five previous games that Cousins missed this season.
Omri Casspi added 19 and seven rebounds, while Rajon Rondo had 10 points and 13 assists.
Bucks coach Jason Kidd was ejected with 1:49 remaining after he slapped the ball out of a referee’s hand. Kidd had to be restrained by O.J. Mayo and an assistant coach, before being escorted to the locker room.
Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton had 21 points apiece for Milwaukee.
Wednesday’s other results:
‧ Pistons 104, Heat 81
‧ Magic 100, Knicks 91
‧ Jazz 102, Clippers 91
‧ Pelicans 120, Suns 114
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