Jeff Dowtin needs more playing time

Jeff Dowtin deserved more minutes for the 76ers.

Caleb Martin doesn’t have to score to impact the game. And the Sixers’ three-point shooting improved dramatically after halftime Sunday night, but then faded again.

Those three things stood out in the Sixers’ 107-105 overtime win over the Charlotte Hornets at Wells Fargo Center.

Dowtin shows his worth

With Tyrese Maxey out with a right hamstring strain, Sixers coach Nick Nurse said he might go to Dowtin to add depth at point guard.

The opportunity for the two-way guard came on Sunday. And he took full advantage of the opportunity, scoring 11 points on 4-for-7 shooting, two rebounds and one steal. Dowtin gave the team a spark off the bench. He also provided solid defense and his ability to make shots opened up breakthroughs for teammates.

Those were all things the Sixers were missing at the point guard position in Friday’s loss to the Lakers when Kyle Lowry was out of the game. They would benefit from keeping Dowtin in the rotation at least until Maxey, their All-Star point guard, returns from his injury.

Martin’s impact

The undersized power forward scored five points on 1-for-5 shooting. However, the 6-foot-3, 205-pounder hit threes. He also grabbed a clutch rebound and hit the game-winning foul throws in overtime. Martin also took on much of the unannounced work. Martin made picks, rushed for free balls and set up his teammates for easy baskets. But he excelled on defense early on. He finished the game with a career-high five rebounds, three assists and four steals.

Night and day and back to night

Three-point shooting has been a disappointment for the Sixers this season. In the first eight games, they only managed 32.6% of their long-range attempts. That was 26th in the NBA.

So it wasn’t surprising that the Sixers continued to miss long-range shots against the Hornets in the first half. They missed 13 of their first 14 three-pointers in the first half. There were all signs of another long night of filming.

But instead the Sixers responded with 6 of 11 three-point shots in the third quarter. They made just two of eight three-pointers in the fourth quarter and overtime. In the game, the Sixers made just 9 of 33 three-pointers (27.3%).