Atlanta
Philip Maymin
Basketball News Services
Don't think that all the Hawks got in exchange for Antoine Walker was a future first round draft pick. They also got Tom Gugliotta. The 35-year-old Googs looked like a teenager as he exploited Chris Webber with 17 seconds left to play by hitting a baseline jumper to give the Hawks a 97-96 lead. But bouncy Allen Iverson would not be denied: he fell to the floor, got back up, drove the lane, and found an open Marc Jackson who was fouled and who hit both free throws to hand the Hawks a 98-97loss.
The play before Googs came up big was a surprising turnover by Webber, no less, who simply threw the ball away with 22 seconds to go, setting up the Gugliotta shot. And the reason the Sixers had the ball at that point? Tyronn Lue had just fouled out on the previous possession after pushing off on Iverson. There goes the theory that the little guys get the breaks: it's the All-Stars who get the breaks.
At the end, after Jackson's winning free throws, the Hawks took a time-out and diagramed a play but Iverson pulled a Havlicek and stole Boris Diaw's inbounds pass to end the game.
NEXT GAME
The Hawks (10-48, fifth in the Southeast) kick off their three game road trip with a visit to the Milwaukee Bucks (24-33, fifth in the Central) in what will be a battle of the basement dwellars of their respective divisions. The game is tomorrow, Tuesday, March 8th, and it starts at 8:00pm Eastern time. It will be broadcast on FSO and NBA League Pass.
TEAM NOTES
Josh Smith led all players with 10 rebounds. Peja Drobnjak had 12 points in 14 minutes off the bench. The Hawks as a whole committed 20 turnovers to just 14 for the Sixers.
INJURY UPDATE
Tony Delk(hand) andDonta Smith(knee) are on the injured list.
Sekou Smith ofThe Atlanta Journal-Constitutionwrites: Woodson's team outplayed the Philadelphia 76ers before a sellout Philips Arena crowd, yet went home 98-97 losers, their 11th in a row, after a wild final 22 seconds.Center Marc Jackson's free throws with 1.2 seconds to play sealed the deal for the Allen Iverson-led 76ers, battling for the eighth and final East playoff slot.
Sekou Smith ofThe Atlanta Journal-Constitutionwrites: The Hawks lost more than just their leading scorer and rebounder during the Feb. 24 trade deadline deal that sent Antoine Walker to Boston. The Hawks lost reserve guard Tony Delk, their best offensive weapon off the bench, the same day. He went on the injured list with a bruised left hand. Delk has missed the Hawks' past five games and is eligible to come off the injured list in time for Tuesday night's game at Milwaukee.Hawks coach Mike Woodson just isn't sure if Delk will be ready by then.
Joe Juliano ofThe Philadelphia Inquirerwrites: The Sixers were fortunate to leave Atlanta with a victory. They were outrebounded by 50-35. And although Iverson led them with 33 points, he shot 3 for 15 from the field in the second half. Iverson played all 48 minutes - 20 minutes more than Chris Webber...While Webber sat on the bench in the second half, the Hawks, whose 10 wins are the fewest in the NBA, pulled down seven of their 15 offensive rebounds.
Ian Herbert ofThe Michigan Dailywrites: I’m sure that Payton didn’t want to play for Atlanta.That’s understandable. The Hawks are 10-47, and they only won one game in February. But what about the half-dozen Hawks who make roughly one-twentieth of what Payton makes? Those guys, like every other athlete, have to stay in the situation they are in. And now they have to do it without their point guard or the forward they traded for him. Rich players, like Payton and Mourning, seem to be simply above the rules.