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Wednesday, Jan. 5 7:00pm ET
Iverson: Image kept him off U.S. team | |||||
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PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Allen Iverson knew he wasn't going to make the Olympic team no matter how many points he scores. Iverson, saying he was left off the team because of his tarnished image, scored 34 points Wednesday night as the Philadelphia 76ers handed the Golden State Warriors their seventh straight loss, 113-92. Afterward, the NBA's scoring leader said he wasn't bitter about being left off the U.S. Olympic team, but made it clear that he thought he deserved to be selected. "I never thought about it because I'm a realist," Iverson said. "I understand what I've been through in my life. I feel like I'm the best player in the NBA, but that's just my confidence. Every player should feel like that. Even me feeling like that, I knew I wasn't going to be on that team. "You want me to tell you the reason that you already know, and I'm not going to do that. Everybody knows." USA Basketball picked Grant Hill, Ray Allen and Alonzo Mourning to fill the final spots on the team that will compete in this year's Olympics in Sydney, Australia. Allen got the final guard spot over Iverson, Vince Carter, Kobe Bryant and Eddie Jones because he's a better pure shooter. "That's the excuse everybody's going to make, that they didn't need me," Iverson said. "You just used the perfect example. Ray Allen is Ray Allen, and Allen Iverson is Allen Iverson. "But please don't mistake me, don't get me wrong. I wish those guys the best, I promise you, because they represent me." Iverson scored 30 points for the seventh time in eight games, but had plenty of help. Matt Geiger, who missed the first 17 games of the year after knee surgery, scored a season-high 26 points. "You never know who's going over 20 points for us," Geiger said. "Usually somebody on our team has a good offensive night, and Allen's there pretty consistently at around 30. Everyone else just does their jobs." Iverson was 11-of-19 from the field, 11-of-11 from the line and had six assists. He went to the bench without argument with 3:51 left and got a pat on the back from coach Larry Brown. "I told them this was a game we couldn't let slip away," Brown said. Antawn Jamison had 26 points as the Warriors lost for the ninth time in 10 games and dropped to 0-4 since Garry St. Jean replaced P.J. Carlesimo as coach. Erick Dampier played his first game after offseason knee surgery, scoring five points in 12 minutes. John Starks missed his first 10 shots and was 2-for-12 with five points. "Our situation's difficult to swallow," Jamison said. "We've had a lot of key guys hurt. The coaching change, we're in a transition phase. We have a long way to go." Iverson reached 30 points with a fallaway jumper in the corner to give the Sixers their biggest lead to that point, 98-81, with 7:43 left. He drove the baseline from the same side to restore a 17-point margin after a jumper by Mookie Blaylock. "That guy's a terrific basketball player," St. Jean said of Iverson. "His ability to stop on a dime, we don't see that often. It's like the way Michael Jordan stopped." Toying with the ball at the top of the key, Iverson made a nifty fake and bounce pass to Geiger, who swished a jumper for his final points to make it 102-83 with 6:45 left. The weary Warriors called a timeout, and Iverson and Geiger embraced as they walked to the bench. The Sixers led by as many as 21.
Game notes | ALSO SEE NBA Scoreboard Golden State Clubhouse Philadelphia Clubhouse Hill, Mourning, Allen complete U.S. Olympic team
RECAPS Philadelphia 113 Golden State 92
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