http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/sports/bk/bkn/rox/1693617 Rockets have answer for Iverson: defense By JONATHAN FEIGEN Copyright 2002 Houston Chronicle UPDATE • Saturday: Rockets 97, 76ers 72. • Boxscore • Record: 11-8. • Yao watch: 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting and 12 rebounds. • Tuesday: Sacramento at Compaq Center, 7:30 p.m. • TV/radio: Ch. 51; KILT (610 AM) and in Spanish on KYST (920 AM). As long as Charles Barkley has been so willing to kiss and make up, Steve Francis and Cuttino Mobley might be due the next mea culpa. At last season's All-Star break, Barkley was even more outspoken in Francis' and Mobley's face about allowing Allen Iverson to burn them for 58 points on Jan. 15 than he was in his recent comments about Yao Ming. Barkley's point might have been well taken, but he made it until Mobley and Francis felt more charred by Barkley than they had been by Iverson. Kenny Smith's jackass still has not heard from Barkley since their night together. But Francis and Mobley might after Saturday's defensive gem on Iverson. The Rockets' zone defense and guards shut down Iverson and rode the defensive performance to a 97-72 win before 15,522 at Compaq Center. The win was the Rockets sixth-consecutive home victory and moved their Compaq Center record to 7-1, their best start at home since the 1996-97 season. By the time Iverson reached double figures, stretching his streak of consecutive games with at least 10 points to 141 games, his jumper with 7:04 left could only pull the Sixers to within 17. He was done for the night a minute later after Thomas nailed a jumper for an 86-67 lead. Slowed by the Rockets zone and harassed in a man-to-man by Mobley, Iverson finished with 11 points on 5-of-19 shooting with four assists and nine turnovers. The Rockets complemented one of their finest defensive games with their most complete offensive night. Their 49.4 percent shooting was their best of the season. Every starter scored in double figures, led by Francis' 20, to go with seven assists and five rebounds. Cuttino Mobley, playing for the first time since Nov. 21 in Dallas, had 16, including 12 in the first half. Yao Ming had his third consecutive double double with 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting and 12 rebounds. The Rockets began to pull away late in the third quarter and early in the fourth. Francis began to find his shot, nailing a trey with 3:34 left before the fourth quarter to give the Rockets a nine-point lead. Francis passed twice to Thomas, who had 12 of his 14 points in the second half, and to Moochie Norris to begin the fourth quarter before making a pair of free throws and a 3-pointer in a 15-5 start to the fourth quarter. The Rockets held the Sixers, averaging 93.5 points per game, to just 10 points in the fourth quarter, half coming after the benches were cleared for the final five minutes. The Rockets went to the ingenious strategy of shutting down Iverson in the first half, making it work so well it was a wonder no one thought of it before. The Sixers did not look like the Sixers with Iverson collecting more turnovers (five) than field goals (three.) At this point, with the Rockets still among the league leaders defensively, the Rockets could claim some responsibility in Iverson's unusual offensive troubles. They started the game in a zone and rarely left it or Iverson's side. But Iverson usually rips through every kind and caliber of defense. Most of his 12 attempts were the sort that he feasts on. When he missed, the Sixers generally followed, making just 17 of 45 shots in the first half. Francis, the Rockets' answer to Iverson, did not do much more. But with his running mate back, he happily deferred the scoring load to Mobley, setting him up for a pair of alley-oops in a 12-point half. The Rockets ended the half with Yao cutting to the basket for a Norris pass and a three-point play and Kelvin Cato turning an offensive rebound into a pair of free throws for the Rockets largest lead of the half, 48-40. But as helpful as getting scoring from throughout their lineup had become, the Rockets' real trick would be shutting down Iverson and the Sixers for both halves.
Our defense was good tonite, but until you can repeat the performance on someone of Iverson's calibre, I'll assume that he helped by having an off night.
