PHILADELPHIA -- The crowd greeted Jrue Holiday with a warm ovation in the All-Stars first trip back to Philadelphia since the 76ers traded him to the Pelicans over the summer. officialmlbclub.com/Toronto-Blue-Jays-Mark-Buehrle-Jersey.html . Holiday returned the favour by putting on a show with 20 points and 13 assists, leading New Orleans to a 121-105 victory on Friday night. "Its fun being back and the crowd showing me a little bit of love," Holiday said. "I didnt hear too many boos, so thats a little surprising, but definitely a good thing. "Just cause its Philly, anything can happen, especially with the boos. You just never know. Im glad it was a good quote-unquote welcome back." Eric Gordon scored 26 points and Holiday added seven rebounds as the Pelicans (7-8) snapped a four-game road skid. Holiday, an All-Star last season for the Sixers, was sent to New Orleans in a deal that netted Philadelphia No. 6 overall pick Nerlens Noel and a future first-rounder. "Its great Jrue did well," said Sixers forward Evan Turner, a teammate of Holidays for three seasons. "Obviously we wanted a win. A guy like Jrue, you want him on your side, but once again, I wish nothing but success for him and for him to keep growing as he is." Tony Wroten scored 24 points on 9-for-13 shooting off the bench, and Spencer Hawes contributed 12 points and nine boards for the 76ers (6-11). Wroten (lower back) and Hawes (knee) both played for the first time in three games, but Philadelphia lost for the ninth time in its last 11. "Theyre a good team," Sixers coach Brett Brown said. "Theyre a hard team for us to guard. I think at times when we tried to extend the defence and press, they went through it and they had success at the back end, even when we went through the press." Missed opportunities plagued the Sixers. On one possession in the third quarter, James Anderson missed three straight open 3-pointers after Thaddeus Young grabbed consecutive offensive rebounds. After the third miss, Young pulled down another offensive board and drew a foul going back up, but he missed both free throws. The Sixers were a miserable 9 for 21 (43 per cent) at the free throw line. Conversely, the Pelicans were 11 for 14 (79 per cent) on free throws. "We still gave up 105 points," Pelicans coach Monty Williams said. "From my standpoint, you give up 30 points in the first quarter, theres a lot to be desired. But it is a lineup that can cause problems, we just have to learn how to defend and share the ball better." New Orleans took a 12-point lead late in the second quarter on Anthony Davis fast-break layup after a steal by Holiday to cap off a 15-2 run. The Sixers responded with a pair of 3-pointers and an 8-2 run of their own to end the half down 61-55. Gordon and Ryan Anderson led the Pelicans at the break with 11 points apiece. Turner also had 11, including three of the Sixers nine first-half 3-pointers. They went cold in the second half, making just three from beyond the arc. New Orleans shot 55 per cent from the field, including 8 for 20 (40 per cent) on 3-pointers. Just two weeks ago, the Pelicans clobbered the Sixers in a 135-98 affair in New Orleans. Fridays game marked the final of two meetings between the clubs this season. "Im gonna be for real, Im glad we beat em twice," Holiday said. "Obviously its good to see old teammates, its great to come back here and feel the love from the fans, but it feels good to beat them." NOTES: The Sixers allowed their opponent triple-digit points for the 15th time in 17 games. ... Hawes double-double streak ended at three games. ... Sunday, the Sixers face the Pistons in Detroit and the Pelicans play the Knicks in New York. http://www.officialmlbclub.com/Washington-Nationals-Jordan-Zimmermann-Jersey.html . General manager Ken Holland told Ansar Khan of MLive.com that DeKeyser has a broken right thumb. Head coach Mike Bab**** said that he believes DeKeyser is done for the season. officialmlbclub.com/Pittsburgh-Pirates-Jason-Grilli-Jersey.html . Montreal defenceman P.K. Subban, who is black, was targeted for racial abuse on social media in the wake of his winning goal in Thursdays thrilling 4-3 double-overtime playoff win over Boston.LOS ANGELES -- Kobe Bryant scored 28 points, Andrew Bynum had 14 points and 19 rebounds, and the Los Angeles Lakers roared to a 30-point lead early in the second quarter before holding on for a 103-92 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night. Pau Gasol had 16 points and 12 rebounds in his first game since Bryant criticized the Lakers front office for allowing Gasol to dangle amid trade rumours. Neither star appeared distracted by the Lakers latest off-court saga as Los Angeles reeled off a 37-4 run after Raymond Feltons game-opening three-pointer for Portland. LaMarcus Aldridge and Nicolas Batum scored 18 points apiece but the Blazers couldnt quite recover from the lowest-scoring first quarter in club history, getting no closer than 10 points late in their fourth loss in six games. The Lakers scored 21 consecutive points during that opening surge and went on to their 14th victory in the last 15 home games. One night after giving up a season-high 63 points in the first half of a discouraging loss at Phoenix, the Lakers yielded a season-low 30 to Portland. Former Blazers guard Steve Blake hit five three-pointers and scored 17 points in his biggest offensive game since joining the Lakers before last season. Portland gradually trimmed the Lakers lead to 84-74 in the fourth quarter, but Bryant and Derek Fisher returned to the lineup and hit big shots. Lakers fans briefly chanted "World Peace! World Peace!" after Metta World Peace hit four of six free throws when Portland fouled him repeatedly in the final minutes. The Lakers showed no signs of disturbance after Bryants post-game rant in Phoenix one night earlier. Bryant said he wished general manager Mitch Kupchak would decide whether to trade Gasol, saying nearly three months of uncertainty and rumours are affecting the Spanish seven-footers play. Kupchak responded by issuing a statement 45 minutes before Mondays game, saying he had to explore all trade options to iimprove the Lakers, even if Bryant didnt like it.officialmlbclub.com/Toronto-Blue-Jays-Paul-Molitor-Jersey.html. For all of the Lakers public disagreements and inconsistent play, theyre still comfortably in the Western Conference playoff picture at 19-13 near the midway point of the 66-game regular season. Portland went scoreless for more than five minutes after Feltons three-pointer on its opening possession, missing six straight shots. Los Angeles missed its first six shots, but quickly established dominance down low with its two seven-footers. The Blazers deficit got ugly while they missed 19 of 21 shots spanning the first two quarters, including another eight minutes of scoreless play from midway through the first quarter until Batums three-point play early in the second. Los Angeles went from a 16-7 lead to a 37-7 margin. The first quarter also was the best defensive performance of the season by the Lakers. Portland scored the final seven points of the first half to trim the Lakers lead to 52-30. The Blazers finally got rolling with the Lakers up 67-39 early in the third quarter, scoring 11 straight points to start a 35-17 run. NOTES: Bryant got his seventh technical foul of the season in the fourth quarter for punching the ball away after an offensive foul. If Bryant gets 13 Ts in this shortened season, he will be suspended for one game. ... Portland got more terrible news before the game on C Greg Oden. The former No. 1 pick had microfracture surgery on his left knee earlier Monday, keeping him out for yet another entire season. "I was told that they were basically going to go in and clean his knee," coach Nate McMillan said. "Any time you go in like that, youre looking to see if something else needs to be repaired. So when you get the call about the microfracture surgery, its one of those Why me? moments. I know hes saying that." Oden hasnt played since Dec. 5, 2009. ... Fans near courtside included Ashton Kutcher, Anthony Kiedis, Robert Wuhl and directors Steven Spielberg and Michael Bay. ' ' '
