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Horry hits key 3-pointer down the stretch
By Wayne Drehs
ESPN.com
PHILADELPHIA -- Slumped in the corner of his locker an hour before tip-off Sunday, Robert Horry was asked whether or not he was tired of hearing about the Philadelphia 76ers' heart.
|  | | Robert Horry's 3-pointer late in the game was too much for the Sixers to overcome. |
After skirting the issue for a few words, Horry, distracted while coloring in the NBA logo on his socks, got to the point.
"It's kind of a slap in the face," he said.
Four hours after mouthing those words, it was Horry, replacing a fouled-out Shaquille O'Neal, who delivered the biggest slap of all, a 24-foot 3-pointer that gave the Los Angeles Lakers a 92-88 lead the Sixers could not overcome in losing 96-91 in Game 3 of the NBA Finals.
A trio of Allen Iverson free throws closed the Sixers to one, but Horry again stepped up, drilling four free throws and grabbing a critical defensive rebound that sealed the victory for the Lakers.
But no shot was bigger than the 3-pointer, which Horry followed by turning to the Sixer fans in the front row, clenching both fists in front of his face and screaming at the top of his lungs, "Yeahhhhhh!"
"That's a rhythm shot for me, something we practice all the time," Horry said. "I said, 'Hey, I get my feet set, I'm shooting this.' They had a small lineup up in, I knew other guys can go to the boards."
Horry found himself wide open on the play, mainly because the Sixers were giving so much defensive attention to Kobe Bryant, the Lakers' prime scoring threat with O'Neal out of the lineup.
On the play, Bryant was double-teamed at the right of the key by Eric Snow and Aaron McKie. He kicked the ball to Brian Shaw, who was extended at the top of the key. When McKie shifted to Shaw, Shaw immediately fired it to a wide-open Horry in the corner.
"I think we had a full rotation, but it was kind of hesitant," Snow said. "When Brian Shaw caught it, he was a little farther out, so maybe we didn't have to fully rotate because of how far out he was. But Horry made the shot."
Sixers coach Larry Brown said the extent to which Horry was open was not troubling to him.
"We were gonna get it out of Kobe's hands and then scramble back," Sixers coach Larry Brown said. "We kind of held the double-team too long and didn't get out on Robert. But I'm sitting on the bench and there was still a lot of time still on the shot clock. So I wasn't too concerned about that shot."
But no shot was bigger in a wild NBA Finals game that saw the Sixers storm back from a nine-point, fourth-quarter deficit only to fall short.
The reason they fell short was Horry, who not only scored all of the Lakers' final seven points, but also added two other big 3 to accompany four rebounds, three assists and a steal on his 15-point night.
"I go out and play hard. This is the time of the season you suck it up," Horry said. "During the regular season you might cruise a little bit, it's 82 games. But playoffs, you know you got to go hard because if you don't win, you go home."
Los Angeles coach Phil Jackson considered the Game 3 performance "old-hat" for Horry, a three-time NBA champion who had a knack for knocking down big shots during his years with the Houston Rockets.
"He stepped into his massive role again like he always does," Jackson said. "People who watch this team know it's no surprise. That's the reason he plays four quarters for us, his ability to defend and make key shots."
Lakers forward Rick Fox said he believes Horry's late-game success can be attributed the countless number of times he played in clutch late-game situations with the Rockets.
"That experience is priceless," Fox said. "He's already won three championships and he wants to win a fourth. And he's always had this fear of possibly finishing his career without a title."
Horry came into the game averaging just 4.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists in the postseason. Not to mention his embarrassing 43-percent shooting from the free-throw line.
After the playoffs, he'll become a free agent, and then make a decision on whether to stay with the Lakers, or return to the Rockets.
But when the pressure was Sunday, the eight-year NBA veteran delivered.
"It's simple. You keep the game of basketball very simple," Horry said. "You kick it out to the open guy, the guy gets an open shot, you shoot. If you don't, you pass it on."
Nobody was more pleased with Horry's decision to shoot Sunday than O'Neal, who was reduced to the role of spectator for the game's final 2:21, thanks to six personal fouls.
"He has done it through his whole career," O'Neal said. "It's nothing new. He hit a lot of big shots for us this year and now the big 3 in the corner."
And just like that, talk is not about the heart of the Sixers, but rather that of the defending champions. Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories
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 The Lakers' Robert Horry comes up with a big 3-pointer with 47 seconds remaining.
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Robert Horry sits down with ESPN's Stuart Scott after his big fourth quarter against the Sixers.
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