Nets Blow Late Lead, Lose to Sixers in Overtime
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PHILADELPHIA – Allen Iverson hit the tying jumper with 7.2 seconds left in regulation and Corliss Williamson scored seven of his 15 points in overtime to lead the 76ers to a 108-100 win over the Nets last night.
Marc Jackson added 19 points and Kyle Korver 15 for the Sixers, who snapped a three-game losing streak. Philadelphia scored the first seven points of overtime and held on for its first home win of the season.
Richard Jefferson scored 33 points for the Nets and Rodney Buford added 15, including 11 in the fourth quarter when his can’t-miss shooting provided a surprising offensive boost.
New Jersey could have used a few more makes from a shorter, easier distance late in the game. Jefferson and Alonzo Mourning missed four straight free throws with less than 20 seconds left, and seldom-used Josh Davis grabbed the last, crucial rebound for Philadelphia.
The Sixers called timeout and Iverson caught the inbounds pass, took Jacque Vaughn 1-on-1, and hit a fadeway from the left side, tying the score at 96.
Jefferson then missed a jumper, sending the game into overtime.
Williamson, proving why he’s so valuable off the bench, was fresh after playing 18 minutes in regulation and opened overtime with a three-point play. He added another short jumper in traffic for a 101-96 lead.
The Nets – who opened the game by hitting 19 straight free throws – did little from the line in the fourth and overtime. They went 5-for-9 in the fourth, then missed all three in OT.
Philadelphia made all seven free throws in the fourth quarter.
Eric Williams had 17 points and Mourning 16 in 40 surprising minutes. Coach Lawrence Frank said before the game that Mourning would not play, adding that he would bench Mourning as a precaution one night after he played 37 minutes against Portland. Instead, Mourning made his second start since his kidney transplant.
“I don’t want to raise antennas that something’s being concealed,” Frank said. “This is strictly a precautionary measure.”
Something changed in the hour before tipoff. Mourning was needed, providing the Nets a little extra oomph for a night after they scraped by Portland 64-60.
Jefferson’s free throw against the Sixers with 4:30 left in the third quarter gave the Nets 65 points.
