Iverson's 46 points made things interesting MILWAUKEE (AP) -- When Allen Iverson took a seat with just under three minutes left in third quarter, he was still mired in a shooting slump and the Philadelphia 76ers trailed Milwaukee by 29 points.  Good time to call it a night and rest up for Game 7, right?  NBC sideline reporter Jim Gray asked Sixers coach Larry Brown about that very notion, which actually made a lot of sense.  This one looked out of reach, and not even the league's MVP, who missed 14 of his first 21 shots and lost his cool in the first half, appeared capable of doing anything about the blowout.  Brown was incredulous, though.  ``Why would I even be thinking about something like that right now?'' Brown retorted. ``We're trying to win the game, even though we were down 29. It kind of blew me away.''  Which is sort of what Iverson proceeded to do.  He scored 26 of his 46 points in the Sixers' 46-point fourth quarter.  ``I know this team. There's no quit in this team,'' Brown said.  Although the Bucks survived to win 110-100, and even though their lead never dipped below 10, Iverson and the Sixers came out of the game feeling good about their chances Sunday night.  ``I feel good about those guys not feeling comfortable having a 30-point lead,'' Iverson said.  Not that the Sixers intend to let another game get away from them.  ``I admire my group,'' Brown said. ``They kept coming. ... But we had too big a hill to climb.''  After scoring 11 of Philadelphia's first 13 points, Iverson, who at times looked like he was a pinball in the paint, lost his cool with 3:38 left in the first quarter when he was whistled for a technical for arguing. Ray Allen's free throw sparked the Bucks on a 24-2 run.  By the time the first half ended with Philadelphia trailing 60-31, Iverson had unraveled, missing nine of his last 10 shots and turning the ball over four times. He also got whacked across the mouth inadvertently by Lindsey Hunter.  Although the Bucks built a 33-point lead, they had to sweat out the victory thanks to Iverson's astonishing finish.  Iverson sat out the final 2:50 of the third quarter, but returned to start the fourth quarter with Milwaukee ahead 80-54.  And for the first time all series, he found his rhythm.  ``I wish I had found it earlier,'' lamented Iverson, who scored 19 of the Sixers' first 21 points in the fourth quarter.  His three-point play with 4:37 left pulled Philadelphia to 92-82, but the Bucks, behind Allen's 41 points, wouldn't be denied.  After one more bucket, a driving layup, Iverson took a seat with 1:45 remaining, leaving him short of the NBA playoff record for most points in a quarter -- 29 -- set by Golden State's Sleepy Floyd against the Los Angeles Lakers on May 10, 1987.  Bucks coach George Karl was certainly concerned that Iverson located his lost touch.  ``We probably lost control of him for the first time in the series in the second half,'' Karl said. ``We've got to view that in the film and see what he was doing differently or what we did poorly to give him that confidence. He had more confidence in the second half than he's had probably the whole series.''  And that's the last thing the Bucks need going into Game 7.  Iverson, who has made 47 of 153 shots (30.7 percent) in the series, not only was unstoppable in the fourth quarter, but he kept his cool.  After jostling with Sam Cassell up and down the court one time, Cassell was called for a foul, and the two tangled at midcourt. The fans and some players thought it was a fight, but the two were smiling all the while.  In the first half, Iverson didn't smile at all.  His trouble began in the opening minutes when he was hit by an elbow to the throat from Scott Williams, who was charged with a flagrant foul.  ``I think it was intentional. He knew what he was doing,'' Iverson said. ``But he ain't throwing no elbow at a punk.''  Iverson felt he was fouled other times, too, pleading with the officials to blow their whistles. Then, after scoring back-to-back baskets, he hollered anew at Joe Crawford, contending he was the ongoing victim of sharp elbows.  Crawford gave him a technical with 3:38 remaining in the first quarter, and the Sixers surrendered 17 straight points and were outscored 44-16 the rest of the first half.  Iverson's comeback bid came up short, but he left the Bucks with plenty to ponder come Sunday night.		Author ARNIE STAPLETON   Source Yahoo   Return to Articles