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"Best" and "Worst" awards: Sixers vs. Atlanta Hawks

    by Keith Pompey, The Philadelphia Inquirer
    Published 

My look at some of the best and worst performances from the 76ers' 92-84 victory over the Atlanta Hawks Saturday at Wells Fargo Center:

Best performance: This was a tough one. Make that an extremely tough one. But I had to give this to Nerlens Noel even though he shot just 4-for-12 from the field and made just 3 of 6 foul shots. The Sixers center did, however, post his 11th double-double of the season and made clutch plays that helped lead his squad to victory. With the Sixers clinging to a two-point cushion, he stole the ball and made a driving layup that made it an 87-83 game with 3 minutes, 10 seconds remaining. He added a foul shot 26 seconds later then grabbed four rebounds  before making a foul shot to give the Sixers their eight-point margin of victory with 13.6 seconds left.  Noel finished with 11 points, a career-high 17 rebounds, five steals and one blocked shot.  He became the first rookie with at least 11 points, 17 rebounds and five steals in a game since Shaquille O'Neal on March 27, 1993.

Worst performance: This has to go Atlanta's Mike Muscala. The second-year center missed two of his three field-goal attempts en route to finishing with two points. The former Bucknell standout was a defensive liability. The Sixers post players were taking turns dunking on him and muscling the 6-foot-11, 240-pounder around.

Best defensive performance: Even though Hawks Al Horford had a game-high three blocks, this award goes to Noel. The center had a game-high five steals to go with one blocked shots. Ten of his rebounds came on the defensive end.

Best performance in a losing effort: Dennis Schroder wins this award after producing 16 points and a team-high six assists. The reserve point guard shot 6-for-13 from the field and made 3 of 4 foul shots.

Worst statistic: You have to give this to the Sixers'  shooting, once again. They made just 35 of 95 shots from the field.

Best statistic: This award goes to the Hawks' foul shooting.  They made 13 of 16 free throws..

Worst of the Worst:  This award goes to Atlanta's performance in the final 4:16. Hawks were outscored 10-1 during that stretch. Atlanta's missed their final seven shots and five turnovers during that stretch.

Follow and contact Inquirer 76ers beat writer Keith on Twitter @PompeyOnSixers and on Instagram at PompeyOnSixers