Skid busters? 76ers take slide to Houston

(SportsNetwork.com) - History could be made in Houston on Thursday night.

The Philadelphia 76ers could match the NBA's longest losing streak when they visit the Toyota Center to take on the Houston Rockets.

Philly hasn't won since a buzzer-beating victory in Boston over the Celtics on Jan. 29. Evan Turner scored the winning bucket and he's now a member of the Indiana Pacers.

That victory came before not only the Super Bowl, but also before the opening ceremonies of the Sochi Winter Olympics.

The Sixers, who have dropped 11 straight as the guest, would match the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA annals of futility with a loss on Thursday night.

Cleveland dropped 26 in a row during the 2010-11 season.

The Sixers' streak reached 25 with a 113-91 setback in San Antonio to the Spurs on Monday night.

Michael Carter-Williams and Thaddeus Young had 17 points apiece to lead Philadelphia. Elliot Williams managed 14 off the bench and Henry Sims and James Anderson both chipped in 10.

"It felt like they were running 100 miles per hour out there," Young said of the Spurs. "They were moving and passing and cutting, but that is a sign of a team who has been together for a few years and has been a championship contending team each and every year."

Next up is Houston, which is 28-7 at home this season and has taken 10 straight in the Toyota Center.

If the Sixers lose Thursday night, then they'll either establish a new NBA record for longest losing streak, or halt the slide Saturday night at home against the Detroit Pistons.

The Rockets are fourth in the Western Conference, just one game behind the Los Angeles Clippers for the third seed, while four games in front of the Portland Trail Blazers, who are fifth.

Houston has won four straight overall and swept a recent short road trip.

James Harden scored a game-high 31 points, including nine in a late third quarter surge that propelled the Houston Rockets to a 100-89 triumph over the Charlotte Bobcats on Monday at Time Warner Cable Arena.

"He just took over," Houston head coach Kevin McHale said of Harden fueling the team's third quarter run. "He's been fantastic playing the right way."

Chandler Parsons finished with 11 points, while Dwight Howard, who had missed Houston's last three games with a left ankle injury, posted a 10-point, 10- rebound double-double for the Rockets. Howard is questionable Thursday.

The Sixers beat the Rockets in overtime on Nov. 13 in Philadelphia. The 76ers are winless in two straight trips to Houston after winning four in a row there.