RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
ATLANTA (AP) -- The real Allen Iverson showed up for the second
half, and the result was another victory for the Philadelphia
76ers.
| | Allen Iverson, right, and Jason Terry chase a loose ball Friday night. | Bouncing back from a miserable start, Iverson scored 15 of his
21 points in the third quarter Friday night to lead the 76ers past
the Atlanta Hawks 76-67.
"I'm just trying to win a championship," Iverson said. "It's
been five years. I thought I would have won a championship by
now."
Philadelphia, coming off its first loss of the season Wednesday
at Charlotte, didn't play particularly well against the woeful,
undermanned Hawks.
The Sixers (11-1) shot 37 percent from the field, committed 16
turnovers and hit only 18 of 32 free throws, allowing Atlanta
(2-11) to keep the game fairly close even without leading scorer
Jim Jackson.
Iverson missed all four of his shots to go along with three
turnovers in the first half. But he scored 13 of Philadelphia's
first 14 points to begin the third quarter.
"I had some good shots in the first half. They just weren't
going down," Iverson said. "I never got into a rhythm. I was
frustrated because those are the kind of shots I usually make."
He capped the spurt by hitting a 3-pointer that gave the Sixers
a 57-46 lead at the midway point of the third. Philadelphia kept
the Hawks at arm's length the rest of the way, never leading by
more than 11 points or by less than six.
"Once he gets out in transition, he's probably one of the
toughest besides Kobe (Bryant) to stop," said Atlanta guard Jason
Terry, who had the job most of the night. "He can do so many
things. He can pull up. He can attack the basket well. He just has
a knack of getting to the basket. It's tough to stop him."
Atlanta pulled to 72-66 on Alan Henderson's layup with 1:37
remaining, but Iverson clinched it with a three-point play. He used
a stop-and-go, between-the-legs dribble to blow by Terry, then made
the shot despite being fouled by Dikembe Mutombo with 48.5 seconds
to go.
"It's not easy to contain that guy," Mutombo said. "I'm glad
I wasn't the point guard having to chase that guy."
"He really had a surge there in the second half," Terry added.
"Like all great players, he put together a spurt to lift his
team."
Iverson also helped at the defensive end, coming up with three
steals and two blocks. The Hawks made only 4-of-18 shots in the
third quarter.
"I've been struggling on offense," Iverson said. "I've been
trying to get it done on defense."
Henderson scored 17 points to lead the Hawks, who made just
27-of-77 (35 percent) from the field in their lowest-scoring game
of the season.
Jackson, who was averaging 17.1 points a game, went on the
injury list beforehand with a sprained medial collateral ligament
in his right knee. Without him, the Hawks were hapless at the
offensive end, scoring only 28 points in the second half.
"I think we played real good defense," Atlanta rookie DerMarr
Johnson said. "We went out there playing hard, but our offense was
bad all day and we rely so much on Jimmy. We've just got to make up
for what he does."
The Hawks scored the first eight points of the game, only to
have the Sixers clamp down defensively for an 18-2 spurt. Eric Snow
had a couple of steals and Toni Kukoc added one, leading to layups
and short jumpers.
Philadelphia led 25-15 late in the first quarter, but the Hawks
took advantage of Iverson's dismal half to trail only 40-39 at the
half.
Game
notes
Terry, who started the first seven games at point guard
before getting benched, was back in the lineup as Jackson's
replacement. ... Iverson's 33-game streak of scoring in double
figures ended Wednesday when he had seven points in the Sixers'
88-73 loss to Hornets. ... Atlanta's previous low-scoring game was
a 94-69 loss to the New York Knicks on Nov. 2.
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NBA Scoreboard
Philadelphia Clubhouse
Atlanta Clubhouse
RECAPS
Philadelphia 76 Atlanta 67
Boston 103 Orlando 98
Cleveland 85 Miami 80
Detroit 118 Vancouver 96
Indiana 99 Washington 87
Charlotte 106 Milwaukee 90
Denver 102 San Antonio 92
Phoenix 80 Golden State 74
Utah 97 New Jersey 85
Seattle 98 LA Clippers 81
LA Lakers 115 Minnesota 108
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