(Associated Press)

NEW YORK -- As reporters huddled around the lockers of Jrue Holiday and Evan Turner, there was Lavoy Allen, dressing in silence until an interview request came his way.

“I feel special,” Allen said. “Ain't nobody talked to me in weeks. It's been lonely.”

The attention surely was on teammates Holiday and Turner, who had returned from injury to lead the Sixers to a slump-snapping 99-80 victory over Atlanta Friday.

Allen deserved as much postgame focus. The second-year center out of Temple played a season-high 36 minutes, pulling down seven rebounds and scoring six points in the win, which broke a five-game skid.

“I was down there doing all the dirty work, playing good D,” Allen said.

How good was Allen's game? Against the Hawks, it was only the seventh time in 27 games that Allen grabbed seven or more rebounds, he tied a season-high mark with three assists and he threw down a demonstrative dunk over Atlanta's Zaza Pachulia to punctuate the end of the first half.

Considering how little production the Sixers (13-14) have gotten from the centers this season – an average of five points and four rebounds in 21 minutes per game – Allen's performance “was great,” according to coach Doug Collins. It's exactly what the Sixers need, as they open an eight-game road trip Sunday in Brooklyn.

“He'll let me know game-to-game what he's going to do and just take it how it is,” Allen said of Collins' plan for him. “I'll take 34, 35 minutes any day.”