Easter Sunday and the Resurrection of the Philadelphia Flyers and Sixers

Easter, in its Christian roots, is a celebration of holy resurrection. However, this Easter Sunday, Philadelphia sports had a resurrection of their own. With the Sixers and Flyers facing elimination, both teams pulled clutch wins.

The Sixers, at first sight, seemed all but eliminated. They were down 3-0 against the Miami Heat and the duo of LeBron James and Dwayne Wade (sorry Chris Bosh). However, the series was much closer than the wins would tell you. Two of the three games were close, with the Sixers holding leads at points later in the game. However, late in Game 4, the Heat were leading by 6 with about a minute and a half left. At that point, the Sixers not only resurrected themselves in the game, but the series.

Set up by a clutch three by Jrue Holiday (who is shooting 11-20 from beyond the arc in the series), the Sixers had a chance for a shot with under 10 seconds left down by one. Lou Williams (who many in Philadelphia feel should have won Sixth Man of the Year Award) then hit a long range three while being covered to take a two point lead. While the Heat had time for a last shot, in typical Heat fashion, they sent LeBron James into an isolation play which was promptly blocked by Elton Brand, sealing the win for the Sixers, and a new hope for the rest of the series. While a team has never come down from 3-0, the Sixers at least have a chance to create a very interesting series.

The Philadelphia Flyers, unlike the Sixers, had to get their revival away from home. Down 3-2 against the Buffalo Sabres, it was a do or die situation. Even more so than the Sixers, it could be argued that the Flyers were outplaying their competition. If not for the exceptional goaltending of Ryan Miller, the Flyers could have wrapped up the series already. But in Game 6, goaltending seemed to be absent at some points, especially in Philadelphia's net. By the end of the first period, Buffalo were leading 3-1. This was a microcosm of the series as a whole though.

While Buffalo were winning in goals, the Flyers were out shooting the Sabres 17-8. With the intermission switch from Michael Leighton to Brian Boucher, the Flyers only allowed 1 more goal for the rest of the game, and fought back to tie the game 4-4. In overtime, Philadelphia's 49th shot of the game would be their last. Ville Leino's unassisted goal ended the game and stunned the crowd. Similarly to their fellow Philadelphia sports team Sixers, the Flyers pulled a win and won when it mattered.

At the beginning of the day, it appeared to many there would be no more playoff sports for Philadelphia. However, thanks to some clutch play, Philadelphia got themselves a holiday miracle.