PHILADELPHIA - Dominique Wilkins slapped Al Horford on his back during a brief locker room chat and dished out a few kind words.Horford at last had a triple-double to add to his own highlight reel.Congratulations on your first one, brother, Wilkins said.With Wilkins calling the action from the broadcast booth, Horford had 21 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists to lead the Atlanta Hawks to their ninth straight win, 105-87 over the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night.The Hawks easily thumped the Sixers even while resting leading scorer Jeff Teague, Paul Millsap and DeMarre Carroll in a stretch of four games in five nights.Its always hard when youre missing some guys, coach Mike Budenholzer said. You worry maybe about each guy not doing his job and continuing to play within the framework of the team. I thought our guys did, for the most part, a good job of sticking to what they do.Horford did his even better, making 8 of 10 shots in just 29 minutes. He was pulled once he grabbed his 10th rebound.All the guys on the bench started telling me, Get two more rebounds! Get two more rebounds! he said. The guys were great about it.The Hawks have won 23 of 25 and won their ninth straight road game. They are in first place this late in the season for the first time since they won the East in 1993-94.Kent Bazemore scored 17 points and Kyle Korver had 15. The Hawks made 12 of 23 3-pointers.Korver showed his former team why hes the best 3-point shooter in the league. He made one 3 late in the first half for a 43-35 lead, followed with another on the next possession, then watched as Mike Scott buried his own 3 to send the Hawks into halftime up 49-37.The Hawks used those three 3s in the final 1:13 of the half to help turn a five-point lead into a rout. They are on their second nine-game winning streak of the season.It kind of feels like a college team in a lot of ways, Korver said. In the NBA, the business side exists. Its on peoples minds. But I feel like everyone here has really bought in.Shelvin Macks 3 late in the third helped stretch the lead to 21 points and the Hawks rested about the entire starting lineup for most of the fourth quarter. Mack had 12 points and 10 rebounds.Michael Carter-Williams scored 20 points for the Sixers and K.J. McDaniels had 14. Guard Tony Wroten did not return after he sprained his right knee. The lowly Sixers had won three of four and zipped past New York in the Eastern Conference standings.They make everything so simple that youve really got to stay disciplined on defence, Carter-Williams said. We didnt tonight and thats why we lost.TIP-INSHawks: At 35, Hawks forward Elton Brand knows his career is winding down. Im enjoying riding the bus, he said. When I go to Utah, I take a walk and try and get a lunch in the mountains or something because I dont know if Ill be back here. Brand played four seasons with the Sixers and helped lead them to Game 7 of the 2012 Eastern Conference semifinals. Brand said its been hard watching the Sixers struggle and wondered how much better off the franchise would be today had it stuck with a promising group of young players. I see the pieces around the league, Brand said. Lou Williams getting 30. Andre Iguodala having a great glue-guy personality. Even (Mo) Speights is getting 20 off the bench. (Nik) Vucevic (in Orlando) is 30 and 15 some nights.76ers: What tank? The Hawks are proof that teams dont necessarily have to take Philadelphias lengthy rebuilding plan to rise to the top of the conference. Sixers coach Brett Brown said the Hawks have built a team with a bunch of really good guys that are a bunch of really good players. ... The 76ers have kept an eye on second-round pick Jordan McRaes progress in Australia. There are no immediate plans for McRae to play in the NBA this season.BOARD GAMELed by Horford and Mack, the Hawks outrebounded the Sixers 47-35. The Sixers have been outrebounded by double-digits in each of the past two games and 13 times overall this season (1-12 record).UP NEXTHawks: Visit Boston on Wednesday.76ers: Visit Toronto on Wednesday. NHL Jerseys China .Y. -- Defenceman Ryan Murphy had a goal and an assist and Drew MacIntyre made 24 saves to help the Carolina Hurricanes beat the New York Islanders 4-2 in an exhibition game Wednesday night. Cheap Boston Bruins Jerseys . Azarenka needed exactly one hour in a 6-1, 6-0 rout of Austrian Yvonne Meusburger to start the night session at Laver Arena. Sharapova had a much easier time earlier in the day with cooler conditions and took full advantage in 6-1, 7-6 (8-6) win over Frenchwoman Alize Cornet, while Radwanska had to rally for a 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 victory over Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. http://www.jerseyscheapnhl.com/.com) - The Toronto Raptors set their sights on a second straight victory with the Oklahoma City Thunder visiting the Air Canada Centre tonight riding a two game streak of their own. Cheap NHL Jerseys From China . Fans can also watch the game on the newly launched TSN GO (currently available to Bell TV and Rogers customers), which gives TSN subscribers the freedom to live stream the networks programming from their smartphones, tablets, and computers at no additional charge – just as they would watch Canadas Sports Leader on TV at home. The following week, MLS ON TSN is at BMO Field in Toronto to deliver live coverage of TFCs home opener vs. D.C. United on Saturday, March 22 at 4:30 p. Cheap Tampa Bay Lightning Jerseys . -- Maple Leafs captain Dion Phaneuf has been suspended two games for his hit from behind on Kevan Miller of the Bruins.College Park, MD (SportsNetwork.com) - The 12th-ranked Maryland Terrapins survived a double-overtime battle with Michigan State on Tuesday, and will now go for their seventh straight victory as they host the Minnesota Golden Gophers in a Big Ten Conference clash at the Xfinity Center. Minnesota took on Purdue in the teams conference opener Wednesday, and watched as an eight-game win streak came screeching to a halt with a 72-68 defeat at the hands of the Boilermakers. The Gophers are 11-3 this season, as two of those three losses have come on the road. Maryland has won six consecutive games, which includes a double-overtime contest against Michigan State on the road on Tuesday. The Terrapins survived the Spartans in their Big Ten Conference debut, 68-66. Maryland is 9-1 at home this season. This meeting between Minnesota and Maryland will mark just the fifth all-time contest for the programs. Maryland has won all four previous matchups in the series, which includes two wins at home. Minnesota held an 11-point lead over Purdue on Wednesday when the two teams broke for halftime, but the Gophers were sloppy defensively in the second period. They allowed Purdue to shoot 53.6 percent from the floor and hit 14- of-16 from the free-throw line to make a comeback for the win. Maurice Walker and Joey King each scored 13 points to lead the charge for the Golden Gophers, while Nate Mason added 12 points. DeAndre Mathieu chipped in with 11 points and Carlos Morris added 10 with five assists and five rebounds in the losing effort. Andre Hollins, whoo netted just seven points in the teams loss to Purdue, still maintains the team lead in scoring entering this matchup with Maryland, as the guard is averaging 13.dddddddddddd.2 ppg on 46.1 percent shooting. Morris checks in behind Hollins in the category at 12.8 ppg, and Walker comes in with 12.0 ppg and a team-leading mark in rebounding at 5.6 boards per outing. Mason (10.8 ppg) and King (10.1 ppg) round out the teams double-digit scorers for Minnesota. Mathieu tops the squad with 87 assists and 37 steals coming into the clash with the Terps. Maryland managed to survive against Michigan State in a tight double-overtime battle despite turning the ball over 21 times in the contest. The Terps won the battle from the free-throw line by outscoring the Spartans from the charity stripe, 26-19. Melo Trimble scored 17 points to lead the scoring charge, and Dez Wells chipped in with 16 points and seven rebounds, although he did turn the ball over seven times in the win. Maryland held Michigan State to 32.3 percent shooting in the Big Ten clash. The Terrapins have played consistent basketball on both ends of the court. Maryland enters this clash netting 74.4 ppg on 46.5 percent shooting from the floor, and is also holding opponents to just 61.5 ppg this season. Trimble has overtaken Wells as the teams leading scorer, averaging 15.9 ppg to Wellss 15.3 ppg mark, although Wells has missed half of Marylands games this season. Jake Layman rounds out a trio of double-digit scorers with 14.9 ppg, adding in a team-leading 6.4 rpg as well. ' ' '