Lavoy Allen has refused to engage in a war of words with Kevin Garnett.

“Even though people are yapping at him and saying all kinds of crazy stuff, he’s not listening to it. He’s just playing,” Sixers forward Thaddeus Young said. “That’s the good thing about Lavoy. He’s one of those guys who’s just going to go out there and play regardless and not listen to all the junk people are talking to him.”

Allen has held Garnett to 43 percent shooting through the first four games of the Eastern Conference semifinal.

“Just not letting him get too close to the basket to post up,” Allen said of the key to guarding Garnett. “Hitting him early and pushing him off the block. When I’m out there that’s my main goal, just to contain him.”

Rajon Rondo took responsibility for allowing the Sixers to speed up the pace during their 15-2 third quarter run.

“They sped us up a little bit,” said Rondo. “They took some quick shots, we had some turnovers in that stretch, and they made shots.

“In that stretch I had to do a better job of slowing us down and getting us into the next set. I had to demand that guys get into the right spots offensively. It’s a calculation for me of when we’re doing a good job in random and when we’re not in that stretch. And in that 15-2 run we didn’t do a good job.

“But in the first half we did make those shots. In the second half when we weren’t making those shots we had to slow it down. But it all comes down to defense. We may have lost our composure, but we’re a veteran team and we’re better than that. We should have responded better.”

The Sixers limited Kevin Garnett to just nine points on 3-for-12 shooting from the floor.

Lavoy Allen defended Garnett for much of the game.

“Lavoy, once again, defensively just did a tremendous job,’’ Doug Collins said.

Philadelphia has been successful in taking away Garnett's deep post-ups.

The Sixers have struggled to contain Kevin Garnett, who is shooting 63.3 percent through the first three games series of the Eastern Conference semifinal.

“He’s playing amazing,” Brand said. “We just have to have the right guys guarding him at the right times and we’ll be fine.
“It’s his length that’s really tough. Then you put guys with length on him and he has the physicality aspect of it. He has a great mix of both being physical and being long and athletic. We just have to find the right match to guard him.”

Doug Collins believes rookie backup Lavoy Allen has the strength and athleticism to make things difficult for Garnett.

“(Against) both E.B. and Spencer, (Garnett) has a speed advantage — so therefore he’s going to get down the floor, and that’s a problem,” Collins said. “With Lavoy on the bench, Kevin Garnett is shooting almost 71 percent. With Lavoy on the floor, he’s shooting 46.”

Paul Pierce is attempting to play through the pain of a sprained MCL in his left knee.

Pierce shot just 2-of-7 from the floor during Boston’s 82-81 loss to the Sixers on Monday.

"I know he's hurt," said Sixers reserve center Tony Battie. “But Paul's definitely not going to ever admit that to anyone.
"You can see it. His shot is a little flat. His knee is bothering him, and he's had some foot problems, and his lift isn't 100 percent.

"But he's still the heart and soul of that team. We know Paul. We know he can get it going. I don't put it past him to come out with a Willis Reed-type Herculean effort in the next game."

Sixers forward Elton Brand, who’s battled through knee, shoulder, and neck injuries, is aware of how exhausting it is to fight through the pain.

"You lose your aggression," Brand said. "When it hurts, that's what happens. Half the time it's subconscious. You have trouble with your movement and your thrust and it's just harder to attack when all that is going on.

"But I know what kind of player [Pierce] is. He's going to keep coming. He's not going to quit."

The Sixers are content to allow Kevin Garnett open shot attempts from the perimeter.

“He’s making those jump shots,” Sixers’ coach Doug Collins said. “He has one foot on the three-point line and he’s making jump shots. My hat is off to him.”

In Game 1, Garnett shot 12-for-20, while Paul Pierce and Ray Allen were a combined 7-for-21.

“Kevin has been aggressive and they think they have a matchup there where we don’t have a really big guy and so he has great extension on his shot and he’s playing great,” Collins said. “If we run out on him then maybe Paul Pierce maybe isn’t 3 for 11.”

The Celtics and 76ers were two of the NBA's better and more rugged defensive teams this season.

Boston led the league in defensive field percentage, while Philadelphia ranked third.

Doc Rivers expects the series to be low-scoring.

Julius Erving has been hired as a strategic adviser to the 76ers.

"(Josh Harris) called me on various occasions for free," said Erving. "Now he's going to have to pay me."

Erving said he would discuss anything and everything with the organization "from sponsors to players."

Erving will maintain his residence in Atlanta, but will travel to Philadelphia when needed.

Dion Waiters, a native of Philadelphia, is open to playing for his hometown Sixers.

“It’d be good if Philly drafted me to play in front of my home crowd,” Waiters wrote in his draft diary. “I could rep that and they’d really be able to see me. There’s no place like Philly.

“I think Philly is a different breed from every other city… just the toughness… I don’t know. Philly is just a different breed. It breeds different types of players. When you’re in Philly, you have to have swag. That’s how we play.”

Waiters is training with Joe Abunassar and Impact Basketball.

"I’m just focused on every aspect of my game and really trying to propel my game,” Waiters wrote. “I really like pick-n-rolls though. I think at the next level, the NBA is based off pick-n-rolls, and I’m trying to really sharpen that up even more then I already got it. I’m trying to master that because at the next level, that’s what this league is all about… and playing defense of course.”

The Philadelphia 76ers have signed guard Xavier Silas for the remainder of the 2011-12 season.  Silas was previously a member of the Sixers NBA Development League affiliate, the Maine Red Claws.

Silas (6-5, 205) was not selected in the 2011 NBA Draft following his senior season at Northern Illinois but signed to play with BCM Gravelines Dunkerque Grand Littoral of the French League.  On December 9, he signed with the Sixers and participated in the team’s training camp along with both preseason games against Washington before being waived prior to the start of the regular season.

Shortly after, Silas joined the D-League.  In 39 games with 22 starts for the Red Claws, he averaged 9.8 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 23.6 minutes per game while shooting 40.1% from the floor, 29.5% from 3-point range and 78.7% from the line.