RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- The Sixers are no longer a one-man show. They're off to their best start in 18 years because of it.
|  | | Eric Snow's play in the second half kept the 76ers unbeaten Thursday night. |
Eric Snow had 22 points as the undefeated and unselfish 76ers
became the first NBA team to reach six wins by holding off
Minnesota 84-82 on Thursday night.
Snow, who had 16 points in the second half a day after a
10-point fourth-quarter performance in a win over Detroit, tied the
game at 77 on a jumper with 1:41 left. His pair of free throws with
26 seconds left gave the Sixers an 83-79 edge.
Philadelphia used a 14-8 run over the last 4:11 to overtake the
Timberwolves.
Sixers coach Larry Brown, who is off to his own best start as a
coach since going 8-0 with Denver in 1976-77, was pleased with the
way Snow ran the show.
"He took some heat from me (Wednesday) because he has to be the
coach on the floor and get us into stuff," Brown said. "But
tonight we got down, he stepped up, got it to the right people and
made some amazing plays."
It's not a secret that Philadelphia has relied heavily on Allen
Iverson for a large share of the scoring the last few seasons. But
this year, his backcourt mate is picking up a lot of the slack.
"That's been a big part of our success so far," said Snow, who
has never averaged more than eight points a game in his career.
"We're not about to get to the point where we feel one guy has to
carry the load."
That was evident in the second half.
Iverson, who scored 80 points in two games against the
Timberwolves last season, had 18 Thursday but made just one field
goal in the first half. He picked up his fourth foul with 6:14 left
in the third quarter and didn't return until a few minutes had
elapsed into the fourth.
Snow was squarely behind the 76ers' second-half comeback.
"It means a lot to us," Iverson said. "It's great when
anybody can step up."
Brown was pleasantly surprised with the Sixers' comeback after
his team committed 11 turnovers in the first half and scored just
30 points.
"It's a miracle we got back in there," Brown said. "We did
some good things defensively, and we just hung in there in the
second half and got our offense going."
The Wolves, who led 36-30 after an ugly first half, missed two
chances to tie the game in the last 16 seconds. Chauncey Billups,
who notched 18 of his 20 points in the second half, missed a layup
with 15.9 seconds left and the Wolves trailing 84-82. Minnesota
promptly fouled George Lynch, who missed both of his free throws.
Billups then took the ball upcourt and put up a wild shot,
getting fouled by Snow with 0.9 seconds left. But he missed the
first foul shot and had to intentionally miss the second. The
Timberwolves couldn't control the rebound and time ran out.
"It's the first time I ever missed in a situation like that,"
Billups said. "We're losing a lot of close games right now. We're
beating ourselves."
The Timberwolves have led at halftime in five of their first six
games yet are 2-4. Billups was confident that trend wouldn't
continue.
"It'll change real quick," he said.
Kevin Garnett, whose 3-pointer with 16 seconds left pulled
Minnesota within one at 83-82, had 24 points. He has scored at
least 21 points in each game.
The two teams put on a putrid performance in the first two
quarters. The 76ers were 10-for-36 from the field, while Minnesota
was 1-for-9 from 3-point range and 3-for-8 from the foul line.
LaPhonso Ellis came off the bench to score nine of his
season-high 13 points in the first half for Minnesota.
Game
notes
Minnesota (11-10) is one of just three teams with an
all-time winning record against the 76ers. Charlotte and San
Antonio are the others. ... Minnesota had entered the game leading
the league in 3-point accuracy (47 percent). They were 5-for-15
Thursday. ... A handful of Minnesota sports stars showed up for the
game. The Vikings' Randy Moss and Daunte Culpepper kept Kirby
Puckett company next to the former Twin's usual seat near the
Wolves' bench. Another Viking, Cris Carter, sat a few rows back, as
did Twins coach Paul Molitor.
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NBA Scoreboard
Philadelphia Clubhouse
Minnesota Clubhouse
Smith leaving T-Wolves? Arbitrator paves way
RECAPS
Seattle 102
Charlotte 94
Detroit 108
New Jersey 94
Philadelphia 84
Minnesota 82
Chicago 95
Orlando 90
Houston 85
Vancouver 78
Phoenix 88
Atlanta 79
Portland 107
Denver 91
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Kevin Garnett takes his man baseline.
avi: 824 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Eric Snow scores on a nice spin move in the key.
avi: 474 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
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