=== Philadelphia 76ers Team Report - March 18 ===

(My Sportsbook) - The 76ers' recent woes continued Wednesday night, when they fell 104-80 at the hands of the New Orleans Hornets in the Big Easy.

For the second straight night, the air came out of the 76ers in the second half. Philadelphia was outscored, 53-27, in the final 24 minutes. After hitting 62.5 percent of their shots in the first half, the bottom fell out on the Sixers.

Philly struggled from the field in the second half, slipping to 47 percent for the contest. The Sixers were outmuscled by the shorthanded Hornets all game, losing the rebounding war, 45-30.

Allen Iverson led the Sixers with 20 points, but he managed to hit just 8- of-23 his shots. Iverson added seven assists in the losing effort.

Aaron McKie, starting in place of John Salmons (flu-like symptoms), tacked on 15 points in the game. Kenny Thomas tallied 11 points and Samuel Dalembert added 10 points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots.

The Sixers had a hard time handling the ball in the contest, committing 20 turnovers leading to 22 New Orleans points. Philadelphia couldn't take advantage of the Hornets, who were missing forwards Jamal Mashburn and P.J. Brown.

Philadelphia has lost three straight on its current four-game road trip which ends Saturday in Miami. The Sixers have dropped seven of their last eight contests on foreign hardwood.

The Sixers have won all three meetings with the playoff hopeful Heat this season. Miami is currently tied with New York for seventh, while Philadelphia resides 3 1/2 contests out of the postseason.