[Philadelphia Inquirer] Sixers drop out of first after a cold third quarter

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Posted on Thu, Feb. 03, 2005

Sixers drop out of first after a cold third quarter

By Joe Juliano

Inquirer Staff Writer

This was the kind of forgettable game that all but the elite teams in the NBA seem to encounter once in a while, which made it kind of a good-news, bad-news night for the 76ers.

The good news is that probably few sports fans in this Eagles-crazy city noticed that the Sixers allowed Houston to batter them on the boards and from behind the three-point arc last night in a 118-95 romp that broke their four-game Wachovia Center winning streak.

The bad news, however, is that the Sixers desperately need to pick up some victories during an advantageous schedule before the all-star break that has them playing eight of their 10 games at home.

The Sixers are 1-1 in that stretch, with another home game tomorrow night against the lowly Atlanta Hawks. But if they can't play any better than they did last night, they will have to say adios to a playoff berth.

In the woebegone Atlantic Division, a playoff berth means winning the division championship. The Sixers fell out of first last night because Boston beat New Jersey to take over the top spot.

Houston connected on 14 of 25 attempts from three-point land. The Rockets shot nearly 54 percent overall for the game. They delivered a 47-32 beating in rebounds, and dished out 35 assists - a season-high by a Sixers opponent - on 41 baskets.

Allen Iverson had 28 points and 10 assists for the Sixers, but he went more than 23 minutes - from early in the second quarter to early in the fourth - without a field goal, missing seven straight shots.

"It bothers us because we lost," Iverson said. "That's the only reason. We want to try to create some space between us and Boston, or the rest of the Atlantic, and we weren't able to do so. We tried. We just couldn't get it done."

While it would be wise to try to string some wins together, Iverson said the team isn't looking past the next game.

"I honestly don't think about [a winning streak] that way," he said. "I just think about winning one at a time. I don't even think that far ahead. I would like to win five, 10 games in a row. But right now, the only thing you can hope for is to just get one at a time. Hopefully, we can run off some games, but right now it's not happening for us."

It didn't happen for the Sixers last night after the first quarter. They shot 61 percent in the opening period but led by only 33-31. The Rockets then seized the game by the throat and never let go.

The visitors, 2-1 on a four-game road trip, made 11 of their first 14 shots from the field in the second quarter to take a 14-point lead. They hit six threes in the second quarter, with Tracy McGrady and Jon Barry draining two apiece.

A late run by the Sixers narrowed the gap to 63-55 at halftime. But they made only one of their first seven shots in the third quarter, and the Rockets took off.

The Sixers never made a run. McGrady led all scorers with 34 points to go with nine assists, and drained five three-pointers. Six of his teammates also were in double figures.

"I can't afford to be frustrated; frustration is a negative emotion," said Sixers coach Jim O'Brien, his voice raspy from the flu. "We have what we have. Our guys are working hard. But there are teams that are flat-out better than we are. Tonight, these guys were flat-out better than we were."

In December, the Sixers played the Rockets tough in Houston, holding them to 31.6 percent shooting but losing, 77-76. But O'Brien noted that the addition of veterans Barry and David Wesley since then has "turned around their basketball team" because of their ability to space the floor with good three-point shooters.

The Sixers didn't have that last night, going only 3 for 14 on threes. Kyle Korver had scored at least one three-point basket in 22 consecutive games, but that streak ended. He went 0 for 3 from beyond the arc and finished with five points.

Contact staff writer Joe Juliano at 215-854-4494 or jjuliano@phillynews.com.