For three quarters, Penny Hardaway was
too big. In the fourth quarter, Clifford Robinson was too much.
Hardaway used his height to score a season-high 27 points and
Robinson scored nine of his 19 points in the final period as the
Phoenix Suns held on for a 93-87 victory over the Philadelphia
76ers.
Remarkably, the Suns held NBA scoring leader Allen Iverson to 18
points, none in the final quarter. Averaging 31.3 points per
game, Iverson often was funneled toward Phoenix's big men and
made only 7-of-28 shots. He was 0-of-6 from 3-point range and
had his shot blocked three times.
"I missed shots I usually make," said Iverson, who had seven
assists. "I was getting by them. I just wasn't making my
shots."
Defended by Jason Kidd, the lightning-quick Iverson was 0-of-7
in the final period as he was held to his lowest total since
managing just 11 against Charlotte on December 11. Phoenix also
limited Iverson to 11 on November 4.
"I just made him work," Kidd said. "I was gonna make it tough
for him. He still played a great game. He had his looks. It
just didn't fall for him."
"He just followed him all over the court," Suns coach Scott
Skiles said. "In the first game Iverson was 4-for-20. You've
just got to make him work for his shots. You know he's gonna
get his shots. You just hope you can make him miss."
In that game, the Suns held on for an 84-80 win, withstanding a
furious fourth-quarter rally by the 76ers. It was more of the
same tonight but Phoenix beat Philadelphia for the 14th time in
the last 16 meetings.
Tom Gugliotta scored 17 points and Kidd pulled down 13 rebounds
for the Suns, who are 1-1 on their five-game road trip. They
lost at Indiana by the identical score on Tuesday and did not
travel until this morning due to inclement weather.
Iverson was not the only Sixer who struggled. Philadelphia shot
less than 37 percent (33-of-90) and made only 19-of-35 free
throws. The Sixers were 30-of-32 from the line in Saturday's
win over Indiana.
"The free throws helped us vs. Indiana," Iverson said. "They
killed us tonight."
Theo Ratliff had 14 points and 13 rebounds and Larry Hughes
added 13 and 10 for the Sixers, who had won five of their last
six games.
While Iverson had a pair of shots blocked, Hardaway had a jumper
and 3-pointer to close the third quarter and give the Suns a
70-63 advantage. Hardaway scored 11 points in the period.
"I try to win a basketball game without having to shoot 27
times," said Hardaway, who was 12-of-21 from the field. "But I
made up my mind after the Indiana game that I was going to be
aggressive because the shots were there for me and I had to take
advantage of them."
A 3-pointer by Robinson and layup by Luc Longley gave Phoenix
its largest lead at 77-64 with 9:15 to go before Philadelphia
rallied with some help from the officials. The Sixers were not
called for a team foul until the final minute.
Hughes and George Lynch scored five points apiece in a 13-2 run
that cut the deficit to 79-77 with 4:57 remaining. The Sixers
had a chance to tie, but Aaron McKie split a pair of foul shots
with three minutes to go and Phoenix's Rex Chapman drilled a
3-pointer for an 86-82 lead.
An acrobatic reverse layup by Hughes halved the deficit before
Robinson got behind the defense for a breakaway layup with 1:54
left. He answered McKie's jumper with one of his own and, after
a steal by Chapman, dunked for a 92-86 lead with 40 seconds to
go.
"I didn't get my shot down early in the game but I was able to
make some key shots down the stretch," Robinson said. "I made
an easy layup, a little jumper in the lane and a dunk. I kind
of caught them sleeping and took advantage of the fact that they
weren't keeping an eye on me."
"We tried to do everything right at the end," Iverson said. "We
just couldn't do it."
Kidd missed his first 10 shots but handed out eight assists for
the Suns, who shot 43 percent (33-of-77) and made 20-of-26 free
throws. Phoenix was outrebounded, 53-46.
Working against 6-3 Eric Sbow, the 6-7 Hardaway repeatedly went
into the post and scored on spin moves or jumpers. He scored
eight points in the first quarter, which ended with the Suns
holding a 22-17 lead.
"In the past, they've been successful (defending the post),"
Hardaway said. "Today, coach Skiles got me into a position where
I can get the ball without them fronting me and I was able to
shoot over them. It was a great deal for me to get the ball in
key spots and to knock them down."
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