Charlotte
Philip Maymin
Basketball News Services
The Charlotte Bobcats clawed their way back from 25 point hole against the Philadelphia 76ers last night to come within one point with 11 seconds left to play. Unfortunately, a turnover followed by a necessary foul made it a three point game with two seconds left, and the Bobcats watched the scoreboard light up106-103in hometown Philly's favor, Charlotte's 59th loss of the season. Allen Iverson simply torched the Bobcats to the tune of 48 points playing every single minute of the game.
Brevin Knight could not stop him, though in his 20 minutes on the floor he did get 9 points and 6 assists, a very effective production. On the other hand, who on Earth has ever been able to stop AI when he gets going? Knight got two technicals in the game, one in the second quarter and one in the fourth, forcing him to miss the final eight and a half minutes of action.
There were two double-doubles last night but none of them were on Philadelphia's side of the ledger. Iverson came close to a triple-double with 7 rebounds and 8 assists to go with his nearly half-hundred point total, but it was Emeka Okafor (14 and 10) and Primoz Brezec (23 and 10) who got that particular accolade. The only other player to get double-digits in a category other than points was Philly's Andre Iguodala who had 11 rebounds but only 7 points.
Charlotte actually outshot Philadelphia in terms of percentages, both inside and beyond the arc, but the Sixers made up for it in quantity, making two more three-pointers and one more free throw than the Bobcats to establish the three-point margin of victory.
NEXT GAME
The Bobcats (15-58, fourth in the Southeast) continue the last four game road trip of their inaugural season with a stopover in Milwaukee to take on the Bucks (28-46, fifth in the Central) who just as of last night have been mathematically eliminated from the playoffs. They may now play with the same reckless abandon that the Bobcats have shown all year. It should be a fun game to watch as the professionals play a game more for fun than for profit. The game starts at 8:30pm Eastern and will be broadcast on C-SET and NBA League Pass.
TEAM NOTES
Jason Kidd, the 1995 co-Rookie of the Year, weighs inon this year's NBA Rookie of the Year debate with a vote for Emeka Okafor.
INJURY UPDATE
Theron Smith(knee), Kareem Rush(knee), and Tamar Slay(foot) are all on the injured list.
Tiffani Helberg ofWCNCwrites: The heart condition that killed Independence High School athlete Devin Howard is very difficult for doctors to detect, said Charlotte Bobcats team physician Dr. Jorge Garcia."It's very difficult to pick up," Garcia said. "The way we pick it up is based on history — talking with the patient and the patient's family." According to autopsy results, 18-year-old Howard, who collapsed during a church softball game Monday, died as a result of heart arrhythmia, a sudden unusual rhythm of heart valves.
Dan Gelston of The Associated Press writes inSFGate.com: Allen Iverson scored 48 points and kept the Philadelphia 76ers in the playoff hunt with a 106-103 win over the Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday night.Iverson had 30 in the first half to help the Sixers take a 25-point lead, which was sliced all the way to one late in the fourth quarter. It was the second straight game the Sixers let a huge lead slip away, blowing a 26-point lead against Boston before holding on for a four-point win.