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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- The Indiana Pacers excelled without Reggie Miller for more than a quarter. Now they might have to play without him for an entire game.
|  | | Matt Geiger of the 76ers squares off with Pacers Dale Davis, left, Reggie Miller and Mark Jackson. |
Miller and Philadelphia's Matt Geiger were ejected with 1:19 left in the third quarter of the 76ers' 92-90 victory over Indiana
in Game 4 Saturday. Both are subject to suspensions for the next
game Monday.
Indiana still leads 3-1 in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference
semifinals after overcoming an 18-point deficit and taking a
five-point lead without Miller, then losing down the stretch.
"I hope Reggie is allowed to play," Sixers coach Larry Brown
said. "I respect Reggie for what he did. We talked about giving
hard fouls. It's just unfortunate how it happened."
After Geiger knocked Miller to the floor late in the third
quarter, Geiger's second flagrant foul, Miller retaliated. He
rushed Geiger and took a swipe at the 7-footer's face, connecting
with a left hand.
The Sixers led 79-61 at the time of the ejections. Both players
left the building before the game ended and weren't available for
comment.
"I do think they were cheap shots, but at the same time, that's
playoff basketball," Indiana guard Jalen Rose said.
The Pacers scored the next 15 points after the fight. The Sixers
came back, but Indiana had a chance at the end. Travis Best missed
two long jumpers in the final seconds, including a 3-pointer as
time expired that could have ended the series.
"I was so angry. I didn't think about it," Brown said of the
last shot. "I felt bad for what happened to Reggie Miller and for
giving up an 18-point lead.
No NBA team has ever won a series after falling behind 3-0, but Allen Iverson feels it's a matter of time.
"Somebody's got to do it someday. It might as well be us,"
Iverson said. "We have another shot. We live to see tomorrow. It
would have been easy to fold and go on vacation, but we battled."
Tyrone Hill put back Iverson's miss to give the 76ers a 91-90 lead with 42 seconds left. Rose missed a layup with 8.9 seconds
left, and Toni Kukoc was fouled after he grabbed the rebound. He
made one free throw to make it 92-90 with 8.5 seconds left.
Best barely missed both shots in the final seconds, sending the
series back to Indiana for Game 5.
Iverson scored 19 points and Hill had 18 to lead the Sixers, who
were swept by Indiana last season.
Rik Smits scored 20 points, and Rose and Miller each added 16 for the Pacers.
"Tyrone Hill was phenomenal," Brown said. "He just willed us to win."
Hill had 15 rebounds as the Sixers outrebounded Indiana 53-37,
including 20-9 on the offensive end.
"We wanted to come out and give a lot of effort," Hill said.
"It was more pride and heart. Nobody wants to get swept. It was
big emotion."
The Sixers appeared to be coasting to an easy victory until
Geiger knocked Miller to the floor.
The ensuing melee and Miller's ejection invigorated the Pacers.
Indiana scored 10 straight to end the quarter and five more to open
the fourth, closing to 79-76 on a 3-pointer by Rose.
Hill ended the 15-0 run with a dunk and a free throw to complete
a three-point play, giving the Sixers an 82-76 lead. Philadelphia
went 5:03 without a point.
But Indiana, playing with Rose and four subs, wouldn't go away.
Chris Mullin tied the game at 85-85 with a 3-pointer with 4:25
left. Best's driving layup and a 3-pointer put Indiana ahead 90-85
with 3:06 left.
"It was no coincidence that we picked up our intensity after
both flagrant fouls," Indiana coach Larry Bird said. "Matt was
trying to take him out."
Aaron McKie answered Best's 3-pointer with one of his own to
make it 90-88. A free throw by Theo Ratliff closed the Sixers
within one, setting up the final minute.
Iverson, who shot just 7-of-26, survived a scary moment when he
got the wind knocked out of him in the final minute of the first
half. Iverson collided with Dale Davis and lay motionless on the
court for a couple minutes.
With his teammates surrounding him and the crowd chanting his
name, Iverson walked off the court with help from team doctors. He
suffered bruised ribs, but will play Monday.
"I'm getting used to it by now," said Iverson, who has an
inflamed elbow, a broken toe and a chip fracture in his ankle.
"It's just another injury to me."
Iverson returned to start the second half and electrified the
crowd with a behind-the-back pass on a fast break to George Lynch,
who flicked the ball to Ratliff for a slam and a 60-47 lead.
The Sixers, who fell behind by double digits in their first two
losses at Indiana, took a 33-18 lead after one quarter.
Miller came alive after the first flagrant foul by Geiger in the
second. He sank a pair of free throws, then scored on a driving
layup to cut Indiana's deficit to 45-34.
Miller picked up a loose ball and put it in to make it 46-38
with 4:13 left in the second. But the Sixers quickly scored six
straight, including four free throws by Kukoc.
Kukoc, quiet in the first three games, scored 10 points in the
first half and finished with 11.
"It's still not enough," he said.
Game notes
Iverson, who has a history of being late and missing
practices, reportedly arrived 45 minutes late for Friday's
shootaround. He was not disciplined. ... Sixers rookie Todd
MacCulloch saw his first action of the series in the second
quarter. He had four points and four rebounds in five minutes. ...
McKie, playing for the injured Eric Snow, scored 12 points. He was
1-of-8 after starting 3-for-4.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Indiana Clubhouse
Philadelphia Clubhouse
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Tyrone Hill and the Sixers wanted to avoid being swept.
wav: 142 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Larry Brown doesn't feel Geiger's intention was to injure Miller.
wav: 106 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Larry Bird thinks Matt Geiger was trying to take Reggie out.
wav: 135 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Travis Best says the Pacers showed chacracter without Reggie Miller.
wav: 133 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Aaron McKie says his team wanted to send a message to the Pacers.
wav: 133 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Jalen Rose says Reggie Miller was just answering a challenge.
wav: 133 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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