The Philadelphia 76ers clawed black to within nine and the Atlanta Hawks called time out with just under eight minutes left. Not taking any chances, coach Larry Drew put most of his starters back in, including Josh Smith, who left the game 7:26 left in the third period after tweaking an ankle.
J-Smoove who was blocking shot after shot in the third came in off of the bench and quickly committed an offensive foul. Then he broke the cardinal rule of the new NBA -- he followed a ref down the floor while still running his mouth -- and got the first of what will be a handful of technical fouls this season.
He was lifted for Josh Powell a minute later.
Philadelphia has been trying to make a game of this one, cutting the deficit to as little as five, but this Hawks team seemingly always has an answer. They lead by 10 with 4:00 left in the game.
The Philadelphia 76ers clawed black to within nine and the Atlanta Hawks called time out with just under eight minutes left. Not taking any chances, coach Larry Drew put most of his starters back in, including Josh Smith, who left the game 7:26 left in the third period after tweaking an ankle.
J-Smoove who was blocking shot after shot in the third came in off of the bench and quickly committed an offensive foul. Then he broke the cardinal rule of the new NBA -- he followed a ref down the floor while still running his mouth -- and got the first of what will be a handful of technical fouls this season.
He was lifted for Josh Powell a minute later.
Philadelphia has been trying to make a game of this one, cutting the deficit to as little as five, but this Hawks team seemingly always has an answer. They lead by 10 with 4:00 left in the game.