Sixers might be struggling but reliable Williams isn't

TORONTO - It was a smooth patch in a rough sea.

Against the Raptors in last night's 111-104 loss, for a span of about 7 1/2 minutes during a 26-15 Sixers run in the second quarter, backup guard Louis Williams was the calm in the team's stormy waters.

They found themselves in an early, seven-point hole, and, off the bench, Williams responded.

One way or another, Williams contributed on all but two of his team's baskets.

Williams hit three free throws after drawing a second foul on Roko Ukic.

Williams found Marreese Speights for a jumper.

He then found Royal Ivey for a three.

He drove for two himself.

Then found Ivey for another trey.

Toronto called timeout, suddenly down, 46-39.

Williams was 4-for-5, with 11 points and four assists in 9 minutes.

Still, Williams continued to run it.

Samuel Dalembert hit a pair of free throws, earned from a foul while fighting for a defensive rebound.

Then, Williams to Speights for another jumper, then a Williams drive. He was fouled - which not only meant two more points but also meant the absence of Andrea Bargnani, who had scorched the Sixers for 13 first-half points but picked up his third foul and sat for the last 3 minutes of the half.

Starting point guard Andre Miller returned for the last 2 minutes. Williams remained on the court, but disappeared. The Sixers scored one more point - a free throw from Andre Iguodala off a last-second dash.

"The second team gave us that real good spurt," coach Tony DiLeo said. "Lou has been playing well for us."

Real well. In the seven-game absence of scoring forward Thaddeus Young, Williams has averaged 18 points.

Last night, in particular, he shined.

He led both teams with 23 points, on 5-for-13 shooting - skewed somewhat by a couple of necessarily harried shots. Endlessly aggressive, he hit a career-high 13 of 14 free throws. He added six assists.

"Ever since Thad got hurt, we've never been in sync," DiLeo said.

His team came to depend on the 20.5 points per game Young had scored in the last 17 games before his injury, a 10-7 stretch for the Sixers that helped secure a playoff spot. Young could return this week. Until he does, Williams sees himself as a viable option.

"I'm one of the guys who can score the basketball," Williams said. "I just wanted to give them whatever energy I can."

A league source confirmed that the Sixers are close to an arrangement with the Nets to share a summer-league team, either in Orlando or Las Vegas. The Sixers last year had a team by themselves in Las Vegas . . . Samuel Dalembert's 18 points and 12 rebounds gave him his first double-double in 13 games. He also hit all six of his free throws and stayed out of foul trouble for a large portion of the game . . . The Sixers shot better than 50 percent from the floor in each of their two wins over Toronto, under 50 percent in each of their two losses. *