Philadelphia 76ers Lose 16th Straight Game

"Tankadelphia" might just be reaching its apex. 

The Philadelphia 76ers continued their march toward infamy on Saturday with a 104-92 home loss to a Utah Jazz team that had lost the first five games of its six-game road trip. 

The secret is out: When your team needs a win, Philly is the place to go.

Saturday's loss was the team's 16th in a row. Not only have the Sixers failed to win a single game since the end of January, they took their place among the very worst in franchise history, per ESPN Stats:

The 1972-73 Sixers are quite famous...and not in a good way. They still hold the NBA record for most losses in a season, with a stupefying 9-73 record. Believe it or not, that wretched group of Philly misfits holds two of the top 11 losing streaks in league history: 20 games from Jan. 9 to Feb 11, and 19 games from March 21, '72 to Nov. 10, '73 (with four of those losses carrying over from the previous season).

For what it's worth, Sixers coach Brett Brown sounded a defiant tone to reporters after the loss, per the Associated Press (via ESPN.com): "I'm going to give that group the benefit of the doubt," Brown said. "We're going to see this thing through."

So the good news is that Brown doesn't plan to forfeit any games. But does this group have what it takes to win one before the end of the season? Utah seemed like one of the best matchups: A bad team that plays even worse away from Salt Lake City. Coming into Saturday, the Jazz had lost 13 of their last 15 road contests.

Philadelphia may have just cleared its biggest obstacle on its way to the ultimate losing streak: the 26-game mark set by the 2010-11 Cleveland Cavaliers. 

There are still three games that could conceivably trip up the Sixers...by giving them a realistic chance to win:

• Mon., March 10: at New York Knicks
• Wed., March 12: Sacramento Kings
• Fri., March 21: New York Knicks

If they fail to win one of those three, the Sixers could head into the March 29 matchup with the Detroit Pistons on a 26-game losing streak, with a chance to make history.

*All statistics are courtesy of Basketball-Reference.