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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
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SHOT CHART
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GAME FLOW
MILWAUKEE (AP) -- Ray Allen was so unstoppable in the early going
that Allen Iverson's astonishing finish wasn't enough.
|  | | Allen Iverson scored 46, but Ray Allen, defending him here, had 41 and got the victory. |
Allen tied an NBA playoff record with nine 3-pointers and had
his own 17-0 run as the Milwaukee Bucks held off an Iverson-led
rally for a 110-100 win over the Philadelphia 76ers to force a
seventh game in the Eastern Conference finals.
Game 7 will be Sunday in Philadelphia, with the winner moving on
to play the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals.
"It was scary being able to score like that knowing I hadn't
been shooting the ball real well," said Allen, who finished with a
career playoff-high 41 points. "I was asking myself, 'Where has
this been for the past couple of games?' "
The Bucks let a 33-point lead dip to 10 in the fourth quarter as
Iverson was phenomenal, scoring 26 of his 46 points. He finished
three points shy of the NBA record for most points in a quarter set
by Sleepy Floyd of Golden State in 1987.
Allen's final two 3-pointers were the biggest of the game,
coming after Philadelphia had pulled within 10 with 5:14 remaining.
"When Allen went on that run, it seemed like he was
unstoppable," Allen said. "He almost pulled it off."
Allen's performance came one day after he alleged that the NBA
would rather see a 76ers-Lakers final than a Bucks-Lakers final. He
spent a long time before the game sitting at his locker defending
his words, then went out and made the biggest statement of the
series.
Hitting four consecutive 3-point shots, Allen scored 19 straight
Milwaukee points over the final 5 1/2 minutes of the first quarter and
the first 1 1/2 minutes of the second. When he was finished, the Bucks
had turned a 16-15 lead into a 33-15 edge.
Allen had 25 points at halftime, 31 before the second half was
two minutes old. His nine 3-pointers tied the NBA record set by Rex
Chapman of Phoenix in 1997 and matched by Vince Carter of Toronto
against the 76ers on May 11.
In the highest scoring game of the series, the Bucks improved to
3-0 this postseason when facing elimination.
"We just had to keep our composure. We've been known to blow
leads," Allen said.
After being forced to play Philadelphia's slowdown style during
the previous three games, the Bucks turned this one into an uptempo
game as soon as they could.
Iverson made his first two shots -- both 3-pointers -- but was hit
with a technical foul by referee Joey Crawford midway through the
first quarter. That turned out to be the moment when the momentum
shifted squarely in Milwaukee's favor.
Allen hit the technical free throw for a 17-15 lead, then closed
the quarter with a pair of 3s. Allen started the second quarter
with another 3-pointer, then came up with a steal, two foul shots
and a 3-pointer in transition that made it 33-15.
"Every night we try to play the way we want to play," Bucks
coach George Karl said. "Making shots and playing with a lead
makes them play uptempo. It's pretty simple stuff."
Glenn Robinson scored his first points of the game on a corner
jumper that gave the Bucks a 40-17 lead, and Allen added two more
3-pointers over the final 2:04 of the second quarter to give
Milwaukee a 60-31 halftime advantage.
Allen began the third quarter with yet another 3-pointer, then
converted a fast-break layup on which he was fouled by Aaron McKie.
He pumped his fists as he lay on the ground, then got up and
completed the three-point play.
He later fed Robinson for a 3-pointer after Sam Cassell grabbed
an offensive rebound, making it 75-46.
Iverson went to the bench with 2:37 left in the third quarter
and the 76ers trailing by 28, then came out and had a four-point
play, a three-point play, a 3-pointer and two foul shots early in
the fourth quarter as the Sixers pulled to 84-73 with eight minutes
left.
Allen hit his eighth 3-pointer with 6:21 left for an 89-75 lead
and his ninth with 4:54 left to make it 92-79. Iverson reached 24
points for the quarter by converting a three-point play with 4:37
left, but Milwaukee scored the next four points to end the threat.
"We're experts at blowing leads. That's our forte," Karl said.
"We usually let it get to five, tonight we stayed at 10."
Robinson had 22 for the Bucks and Scott Williams played his best
game of the series in scoring 12 points -- including 10 of
Milwaukee's first 14.
Williams also delivered a hard foul on Iverson just over two
minutes into the game, elbowing Iverson hard in the shoulder as he
drove the lane. Williams was called for a flagrant foul and Iverson
rubbed his shoulder before going to the foul line and missing his
first attempt -- much to the delight of the sellout crowd of 18,717.
Iverson hit 3-pointers on his next two touches, but the
technical foul seemed to take him out of his rhythm just as Allen
was starting to get a groove.
"If we play like we're capable of playing and not let the
referees have a hand in the outcome of the game, then we'll have
nothing to worry about," Allen had said Thursday.
Turns out Allen was right, although Iverson did all he could to
make the Bucks sweat.
"I bet they know now that if they get us down by 30 Sunday
we're not going to give up," Iverson said.
Notes: Sixers forward Matt Geiger was in uniform for the first
time since Game 1. He played three minutes. ... Bucks coach George
Karl improved his career record to 22-11 in elimination games. ...
Williams had scored a total of just 15 points in the first five
games of the series. ... Allen's previous career playoff-high was
38 points in Game 2 of this series.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Philadelphia Clubhouse
Milwaukee Clubhouse
War of the words: Bucks, Sixers on collision course
Iverson finally shows MVP form, but too late
Dr. Jack: Sixers need to control tempo
RECAPS
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Ray Allen steps it up in Game 6 with a 41-point performance, including nine 3-pointers.
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Highlights of Allen Iverson's 46-point performance in Philly's Game-6 loss.
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Postgame reaction from the players after Milwaukee's Game 6 victory.
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 The Bucks played a near-perfect first half, but George Karl got a little scared when the Sixers rallied in the second.
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ESPN's Scott Walker catches up with Ray Allen after the Bucks victory over Philadelphia.
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After the victory, a sarcastic George Karl says the Bucks are experts at blowing leads.
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