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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- Allen Iverson became the latest
Philadelphia player to get hurt, and still the 76ers looked
unstoppable.
|  | | Arvydas Sabonis returned from a knee injury Friday and had 13 points, 11 rebounds in a season-high 28 minutes. |
Allen Iverson had 30 points and a season-high 10 assists despite
a bruised left hip, and his teammates picked up the slack in the
second half to lead the 76ers past the Portland Trail Blazers
107-94 Friday night.
Playing his original position of point guard much of the game,
Iverson had 25 points by halftime but missed his next seven shots
and went scoreless for nearly 19 minutes. Yet Philadelphia, without
point guard Eric Snow and forward Tyrone Hill, pushed its lead from
seven to 13 during his dry spell.
"I don't even know how I played in the second half, as hard as
I hit my hip," said Iverson, who hit the floor hard after Bonzi
Wells flagrantly fouled him in the second quarter. "They weren't
going to let me do what I did to them in the first half. That's
when my teammates took over."
Theo Ratliff added 19 points and 10 rebounds, Nazr Mohammed had
a career-high 11 points and Todd MacCulloch had nine rebounds for
Philadelphia, which bounced back from its first two-game losing
streak of the season.
The Sixers (15-4) are tied with the Utah Jazz for the NBA's best
record.
Steve Smith scored 17 points to lead the Trail Blazers, who lost
the lead for good in the second quarter when the Sixers went on a
10-0 run.
"At either end, we really didn't do too much," Smith said.
"Iverson had a great half, then we found a way to stop him in the
second half, and other guys scored. We just haven't got it
together."
Snow is out 6-8 weeks with a stress fracture in his right ankle,
and Hill has a sore right ankle.
They weren't needed, though, as the Sixers shot 72 percent in
the first quarter. A spinning layup by Stacey Augmon put the
Blazers ahead 40-38, but the 76ers took control from there. Iverson
capped the 10-0 spurt with a layup, and Portland didn't get closer
than five the rest of the game.
"Maybe they looked at us like we've got nine guys, and some key
guys hurt, and they took us for granted," said the Sixers' George
Lynch, who had 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting. "But if there's one
thing we do, we come out every night and we play hard, no matter
what the situation."
Portland's Arvydas Sabonis played a season-high 28 minutes after
sitting out four games with an injured left knee and had 13 points
and 11 rebounds.
The game was a good example of the new Iverson, who seems just
as interested in wins and getting his teammates involved as he does
scoring. He also was coming off two days' rest since losing his
duel with Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night.
Iverson made 8 of 13 shots in the first half, but with him
missing everything in the third, his teammates picked up the slack.
A layup by Jumaine Jones and a putback slam by Ratliff on a miss by
Iverson pushed the lead to 77-68 midway through the third.
"He didn't get a rebound in the first half -- I got on him about
that," Philadelphia coach Larry Brown said of Iverson. "I thought
only North Carolina guys got 50, but he was on his way."
A 22-foot jumper by Aaron McKie made it 85-71 late in the third.
When the lead reached 16 early in the fourth, boos came down from
the sellout crowd.
In the first half, the Blazers tried to help Damon Stoudamire
and Greg Anthony defend Iverson, but they were too aggressive.
Wells was called for the flagrant foul after he grabbed Iverson
by the right arm and pulled him to the court. Iverson made two free
throws, got knocked down by Anthony on the next possession and made
two more from the line.
Portland's Rasheed Wallace picked up his third foul when he came
over to double-team, and Iverson ran into him and crashed to the
floor again. Two more free throws gave the Sixers a 59-50 lead.
Game notes
The Blazers fell to 13-8, 2 games behind Sacramento in the
Pacific Division. ... The Sixers have held 18 of their 19 opponents
under 100 points. ... The 76ers got to the line 15 times in the
second quarter, making 11. Portland was 4-of-6. ... The Sixers
improved to 2-3 against the Western Conference. They're 13-1
against the East.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Philadelphia Clubhouse
Portland Clubhouse
RECAPS
Indiana 104
Boston 91
Charlotte 92
LA Clippers 87
Miami 80
Atlanta 76
New Jersey 86
Phoenix 84
Dallas 105
Chicago 86
Philadelphia 107
Portland 94
Toronto 108
Golden State 92
Seattle 103
LA Lakers 95
Sacramento 111
Houston 98
 FROM
ATHLETESDIRECT
Mike Dunleavy Official Site
Larry Brown Official Site
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