December 22, 2004 - 7:00PM (EST)
Philadelphia 76ers (10-14) VS Indiana Pacers (12-11)
@Conseco Field House, Indianapolis, Indiana
Aired on:
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Projected Starting Lineups:
Season Series: Sixers lead 1-0.
Storyline: INDIANAPOLIS (Ticker) -- Allen Iverson has a chance at a third straight 50-point game Wednesday when the Philadelphia 76ers visit the Indiana Pacers.
Iverson, who recently topped the 15,000 point mark for his career, had 54 against the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday and 51 against the Utah Jazz on Monday. In those games, Iverson shot 58 percent (35-of-60) from the field, including 8-of-13 from 3-point range.
Wilt Chamberlain had seven consecutive 50-point games in December, 1961. The other players with back-to-back 50-point games are Rick Barry, Bernard King, Elgin Baylor, Michael Jordan and Antawn Jamison.
Despite Iverson's effort against Utah, the 76ers lost to the Jazz, 103-101. Philadelphia made just nine baskets in the first half and trailed by 16 points at intermission.
Indiana has not played since Saturday when it lost to the surging Chicago Bulls, 85-71. Jamaal Tinsley scored a career-high 33 points, but the rest of the team combined for 38.
Tinsley is averaging 23 points, seven assists and five rebounds in the last nine games for the Pacers, who are 5-9 since the suspensions of Ron Artest, Jermaine O'Neal and Stephen Jackson following the brawl against the Detroit Pistons.
Philadelphia rallied from a 17-point halftime deficit to defeat Indiana in overtime, 106-104, on November 12. Kyle Korver had a career-high seven 3-pointers and finished with 23 points, while O'Neal scored 39 for the Pacers.
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Phanaticisms: Here goes the big bad Western road trip, and the Sixers definitely need to get off to a good start or things could snowball with another dissapointing loss to start off.
While everyone else might be wondering about whether or not Allen Iverson will go for 50 in a third consecutive game. What I'm wondering about is whether we can get more production from other players on the team, while the Pacers are coming off of a 16 point loss to the Bulls, the Sixers aren't good enough to overlook anyone, especially with Kenny Thomas most likely to sit this game out with the back strain he's been suffering from.
Without Jermaine O'Neal, the Pacers aren't even close to being the same team on the boards, so this might finally be a game the Sixers have the rebounding advantage. I think a key to this one is to get David Harrison
While it'd be great to see Iverson going off for 50 again, he needs to be more of a distrubtor in this one getting Iguodala, Williamson, Dalembert and Jackson some easy baskets early. If he can get that going that'll make it easier for Korver to get going on the perimeter.
Also a question off topic, Kenny Thomas had the flu, then John Salmons, and now Brian Skinner (not that that matters) wouldn't you want to keep a person with the flu away from the team?
This should be a fast paced game, with both teams scoring up into the high 90s.
Key Matchup:
Injuries:
76ers - Glenn Robinson (ankle - IL), John Salmons (bronchitis - questionable), Josh Davis (elbow - IL), Kedrick Brown (back - IL), Kenny Thomas (back - questionable).
Pacers - Jonathon Bender (knee - IL), Scot Pollard (back - IL), Austin Croshere (ankle - probable), James Jones (jaw - questionable), Anthony Johnson (hamstring - questionable).
Stat Leaders:
Points - Iverson (76ers) 28.2 PPG; Miller (Pacers) 17.1 PPG.
Rebounds - Dalembert (76ers) 6.9 RPG; Foster (Pacers) 13.2 RPG.
Assists - Iverson (76ers) 7.3 APG; Tinsley (Pacers) 7.6 APG.
Steals - Iverson (76ers) 2.4 SPG; Tinsley (Pacers) 2.72 SPG.
Blocks - Dalembert (76ers) 1.6 BPG; Harrison (Pacers) 1.77 BPG.