Allen's 22 Rebounds Lead Sixers Past Bobcats 87-76
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Lavoy Allen had 14 points and a career-high 22 rebounds, and Jrue Holiday scored 20 points to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to an 87-76 win over the Charlotte Bobcats on Saturday night.
Evan Turner had 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Jeremy Pargo scored 12 points in his Sixers debut. Pargo signed a 10-day contract this week after he was waived by Cleveland.
The Sixers improved to 5-2 on their eight-game homestand that ends Monday against the Los Angeles Clippers. The solid showing at home has helped the Sixers inch closer to the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.
Ramon Sessions scored 20 points, Byron Mullens had 16 and Gerald Henderson 13 as the NBA-worst Bobcats lost their seventh straight.
Wearing No. 0, Pargo was a pleasant surprise in his first game since he was waived at the end of last month. He started 11 of his 25 games played with the Cavaliers and averaged 7.8 points. He even scored a career-high 28 against the Sixers in November.
With only a 10-day contract to prove his worth, Pargo was a nice spark off the bench, hustling and having fun for a team that needed a dose of both.
He had the play of the game when he drove the length of the court for a right-handed layup and a foul. He gave a playful smile to fans in the baseline, then sank the free throw for a 16-point lead.
Pargo wowed the crowd again in the fourth with a one-handed reverse that kept the lead at double-digits. The 6-foot-2 guard out of Gonzaga became a social media hit midway through the quarter, with fans posting on Twitter the Wells Fargo Center should be renamed the Wells Pargo Center.
He did get whistled for a technical foul in the fourth, which comes with a fine — a hit to the wallet a player on a 10-day deal might not want.
Before the game, Allen noted he's had three teammates this season in the locker to his right. Maalik Wayns and Shelvin Mack couldn't stick. More games like this and Pargo just find a home in Philadelphia for the rest of the season.
Spencer Hawes added 17 points and nine rebounds to help the Sixers crush the Bobcats 60-40 on the boards. Allen split his rebound total.
The Sixers needed Pargo driving the lane for buckets. They missed 14 of 16 3-point attempts and hit almost nothing from any spot outside the paint.
That helped keep the game close for the Bobcats, playing a night after they blew a 20-point lead in a loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Sixers opened the third on a 12-2 run to break open a one-point game at the break. The Bobcats closed within seven late in the fourth until Holiday pushed them back with a 16-footer. He had a driving layup late to make it an 11-point game and seal the win.
Notes: Two Charlotte assistants had Temple connections. Rick Brunson starred for the Owls in the 1990s and Dan Leibovitz was an assistant under John Chaney. ... 76ers coach Doug Collins said he had a hard time figuring out his inconsistent team. "Any little change affects this team. It knocks us out of sync," he said. Why? "I don't know. It's just their personality."
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