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  Thursday, Mar. 16 7:30pm ET
Miami's Bowen haunts former team
 
  RECAP | BOX SCORE | GAME FLOW

MIAMI (AP) -- With Allen Iverson suspended and Bruce Bowen out to beat his former team, the Philadelphia 76ers didn't have much of a chance against the Miami Heat.

Bowen, a defensive specialist off the bench, sank three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter Thursday to lead Miami to a 92-77 victory.

Alonzo Mourning
Philadelphia center Matt Geiger fouls Miami counterpart Alonzo Mourning, who scored a game-high 21 points.

Iverson was suspended for at least one game after missing the team's 11 a.m. shootaround. He was at the arena before the game but didn't sit on the bench.

"The guy leads the league in scoring, so there's not a whole lot to say after that," Miami's Alonzo Mourning said. "Of course they're going to miss a guy like that. Still, we knew we couldn't take them lightly."

Tim Hardaway came within a rebound of the fourth triple-double in Heat history. He had 18 points, 14 assists and nine rebounds.

Bowen, acquired off waivers Feb. 23 after being released by the 76ers, scored a season-high 16 points.

"I was hoping he'd get a chance to shoot it, because he didn't get much of a chance to shoot it on our team," said 76ers coach Larry Brown, a reference to Iverson's eagerness to shoot.

"Their 3-pointers killed us," Brown said. "It was a pretty even game besides that."

Miami shot 9-for-13 from 3-point range, including Hardaway's jumper to cap a 12-2 run at the end of the first half that put Miami ahead to stay. Philadelphia closed to 72-65, but Bowen sank two 3-pointers for a 79-68 lead with 4:31 left.

After Bowen's first long jumper, he grinned at the 76ers' bench as he ran back upcourt.

"It just so happens that guys are making the open pass to me," he said. "It's just a simple pass, and I'm knocking the shot down."

The Heat earned their 13th straight victory at home to break the franchise record set in 1992-93.

"The win streak is nice," coach Pat Riley said. "We have nine of our last 13 games at home, so we need to take advantage of that."

The Heat have won 12 of their past 13 games against the 76ers, who fell 5½ games behind Atlantic Division leader Miami.

Theo Ratliff scored 20 for the 76ers, who rank 25th in the league in scoring even with Iverson. His replacement at guard, Aaron McKie, had 14 points but only one assist.

Mourning scored 21 points.

Game notes
Miami's Dan Majerle (ankle) and Otis Thorpe (knee) missed the game. ... The Heat have won seven in a row against Eastern Conference teams. ... With another victory, the 76ers are assured of their best record since 1991-92, when they finished 35-47. ... The Heat's last triple-double was by Billy Owens on Jan. 5, 1995. Hardaway had four triple-doubles in his first three NBA seasons with Golden State.
 


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Iverson angry after Sixers' one-game suspension


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