National Basketball Association

Dalembert plays well with heavy heart

Published Jan. 13, 2010 12:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

Playing with a heavy heart, Haitian native Sam Dalembert grabbed a season-high 21 rebounds in the Philadelphia 76ers' 93-92 loss to the New York Knicks on Wednesday night.

Dalembert, who was born in Port-au-Prince in 1980 and lived there until he was 14 before moving to Montreal, was still trying to gather information on family members still living in Haiti before Wednesday's game. Tuesday's earthquake devastated Haiti and left thousands dead

While his father and one sister had contacted him, a number of other relatives and friends were still unaccounted for as he prepared to play.

"It was a relief and I can say that," Dalembert said. "When the game started, I was able to keep my mind on the game. It kind of helped me out for two hours."

Before Fridays game against Sacramento, Dalembert will continue to monitor the situation and assist in fundraising efforts.

"We should be announcing something in the next couple of days," Dalembert said.

The Sixers held a moment of silence before Wednesday's game out of respect for Dalembert, who had 10 points and 11 rebounds in the first half alone. He finished with 12 points.

But the Knicks won it on David Lee's game-winning layup with 13.3 seconds remaining.

Lee scored 24 points, Wilson Chandler added 18 and the Knicks salvaged the finale of a three-game trip. They also ended a nine-game skid in Philadelphia, dating to Dec. 17, 2004.

Lee started for New York despite the death of his grandfather, E. Desmond Lee, who was 92 when he passed away on Tuesday night. Lee considered skipping this game but changed his mind.

"I made the decision to stay here rather than going to St. Louis because I wanted to fill that role as team captain and leader of this team," said Lee, who added nine rebounds. "It was a quality win for us. I didn't have the best energy, but it was enough."