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| Allen Iverson 23pts vs LeBron James Cavs 08/09 NBAThu, 20 Nov 2008 13:45:33 -0800 by pennyccwThe Detroit Pistons are starting to show their potential with Allen Iverson, beating two of the NBAs best teams in less than a week.Iverson scored 23 points, and Rasheed Wallace had 10 of his 21 points during a fourth-quarter surge that gave Detroit a 96-89 victory over Cleveland on Wednesday night that ended the Cavaliers eight-game winning streak.Detroit handed the Los Angeles Lakers their only defeat, beating them by double digits Friday night on the road.Its early, but its exciting, Iverson said.Wallace wouldnt go that far.Its not like we set out and said, `Oh, these are the NBAs hottest teams. Were just trying to make ourselves better, said Wallace, who had a season-high 15 rebounds. We really dont care about what the other teams are doing at that moment.We just want to make ourselves better for June.If the Pistons can keep playing tough defense against stars, as they did against LeBron James and Kobe Bryant, theyll improve their chances in the playoffs.James was 8-of-21 and missed all four of his 3-point attempts, but made enough free throws to finish with 25 points to fall just five below his league-leading average.That happens in this league, he said. You have good games and bad games.Bryant missed 18 of 30 shots last week against the Pistons.The Cavs are a half-game ahead of the Pistons in the Central Division.Detroit lost its first two games after acquiring Iverson from Denver on Nov. 3, but has won four of its last five.Its way too early to know anything about them, James said.It looked as if the Cavs were going to beat Detroit the first time they saw them with Iverson, going on a 21-6 run to take the lead in the first quarter and taking 13-point leads in both the second and third.But Wallace gave the Pistons the lead for good midway through the fourth with a pair of 3-pointers in a 36-second span and made another long jumper to give them a 95-82 lead with 2 1/2 minutes left.Sheed hit those long 3s and AI did a great job of getting to the hole, James said. They really turned it up in the second half, and it caught us off guard.His coach agreed.They played a great second half and we didnt respond, Cavs coach Mike Brown said. It was like a bunch of their players got together at halftime and said Lets bear down and take this game away from the Cavaliers, and thats just what they did. They brought us to a complete standstill.Thats the first time Ive seen us that discombobulated all year.Detroits Richard Hamilton scored 15 points, reserve Rodney Stuckey and Tayshaun Prince each added nine points. Clevelands Mo Williams scored 25 points, Zydrunas Ilgauskas had 13 points and Delonte West added 11.NotesThe Cavs put Wally Szczerbiak on the inactive list, excusing him to address a personal matter, and activated Darnell Jackson. Brown said he didnt know when Szczerbiak will return. The Central Division rivals dont meet again until Feb. 1 at The Palace. Ilgauskas made the seventh 3-pointer of his career and attempted two from beyond the arc in one game for the first time in his 11-season career. Ive hit two already this season, so I went for another one, he said. Ill probably never take two in the same game again. Kid Rock sat in the front row at The Palace, which had numerous patches of empty seats in the upper level in another sign of the Motor Citys economic woes. Former Piston Ben Wallace said he was surprised Chauncey Billups was dealt to Denver. I guess thats the end of the era now, he said. It isnt the same team now. Related: michael jordan paul pierce celtics finals garnett walker bulls lebron james dunk usa olympics basketball kobe byrant wade yao iverson mayo beasley rose shaq bird johnson heat lakers carter vc ai mj tmac 2k9 live 08 09 mvp reebok highlight the answer detroit pistons joe dumars rasheeed wallace chauency billups crossover | |
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| LeBron James 41pts vs Bucks 08/09 NBA *Dunk from the free throw line!!!Thu, 13 Nov 2008 02:24:20 -0800 by pennyccwnbaLeBron James supplied the Cleveland Cavaliers with a double dose of 40. James matched a season-high with 41 points in a season-best 43 minutes and Mo Williams scored 16 against his former team, leading the Cavaliers to their fifth straight win, 99-93 over the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night.It was the third time in four games that James has scored exactly 41."I'm not doing it on purpose," he said.The All-Star forward, who twice topped out at 41 points in wins over Chicago last week, scored 12 in the fourth quarter and didn't come out in the second half for the Cavaliers, who committed just one turnover -- a 24-second violation -- after halftime."LeBron is LeBron," said Cavs coach Mike Brown, who would prefer to keep his superstar under 40 minutes. "We needed all 42 minutes, 46 seconds of him on the floor."With Cleveland leading by five in the fourth, James poked away a pass intended for Richard Jefferson, streaked to the other end and lifted off one step inside the foul line before smashing the ball through the hoop. Moments later, he dropped a 20-foot jumper and then drove through the lane for a finger roll to give the Cavs an 11-point lead.Zydrunas Ilgauskas added 15 points and Anderson Varejao had 13 -- 8 on 4-of-4 shooting in the fourth quarter -- with 10 rebounds for Cleveland, which didn't put Milwaukee away until the final four minutes."We'll take the win," said a tired James, who got a massage in the locker room afterward. "But we have to continue to get better for the long term."Jefferson scored 19 and Luke Ridnour 17 -- 14 in the third -- to pace the Bucks, who were again without leading scorer Michael Redd. He missed his fourth straight game with a sprained right ankle.Redd tried to practice on Tuesday, but "was noticeably limping," coach Scott Skiles said. "It was clear he wasn't ready."Without Redd, Skiles and the Bucks had no answer at either end for James."He had 41 and he made it look easy," Skiles said. "We tried switching a little bit. My only real complaint would be that we're still not aggressive enough on someone like that. The better players right now are putting up big numbers on us. LeBron is going to get his numbers -- 16 for 24 -- that's a pretty easy night for him."A couple of times we did a good job on him, but he was finding other people because we had a couple of other guys asleep."Williams, acquired by Cleveland in a trade this summer from Milwaukee, downplayed his first matchup against his old team saying beforehand that it was "just another day."His new teammates played as if it was just another game for much of the night before closing out the Bucks, who were within 88-83 when James made his game-sealing steal and dunk."I had fun," said Williams, who was bothered by an upset stomach all game, "and 'Bron was 'Bron."Williams said he take any extra satisfaction in beating the Bucks, his team for four seasons."I wasn't overly hyped or overly motivated as I was when I got traded," he said. "Did it feel good to beat them? Yeah."The Cavs led by six points at half and quickly pushed their lead to 11 as Williams hit a 3-pointer and made two free throws to open the third quarter.But Ridnour got hot. He hit two 3-pointers and went 5-for-5 from the field in the period as Milwaukee opened a 69-66 lead with 2:20 left. James, though, responded by making three straight outside jumpers, the last one at the horn to give Cleveland a 74-71 lead entering the fourth.James was in China at the Beijing Olympics when the Cavaliers acquired Williams, trading forward Joe Smith and guard Damon Jones in a three-team deal with Milwaukee and Oklahoma City. Jones isn't even with the Bucks, who are allowing him to pursue other opportunities in the league.James couldn't remember his first thought at learning of the deal, but he knew he liked it."I knew the type of player that he was," James said. "He has explosiveness. He took over games."He did against the Cavs. Williams helped Milwaukee go 3-1 against Cleveland last season, averaging 26 points and nine assists in the four games.This season, Williams has stabilized Cleveland's backcourt, given the club another scoring option and become the point guard the Cavs have coveted since James turned pro. Williams has been everything the Cavs could have hoped for."Even a little bit more," James said.And James has been even more than Williams imagined."I could go on and on about how great a player he is," Williams said. "He cares about his players and his teammates. Just like we don't go anywhere without him, he doesn't go anywhere without us." Related: michael jordan paul pierce celtics finals garnett walker bulls lebron james dunk usa olympics basketball kobe byrant wade yao iverson mayo beasley rose shaq bird johnson heat lakers carter vc ai mj tmac 2k9 live 08 09 mvp reebok highlight the answer detroit pistons joe dumars rasheeed wallace chauency billups crossover | |
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| Allen Iverson Pistons' Debut 24pts 6asts vs Nets NBA 08/09 sick crossover on Eduardo Najera!Sun, 09 Nov 2008 19:59:05 -0800 by pennyccwAllen Iverson's first game with Detroit turned into the best night of Devin Harris' career.Harris scored a career-high 38 points Friday night, outplaying Iverson in the second half and leading the New Jersey Nets to a 103-96 victory over the Pistons.New Jersey, which trailed by as many as 14 points in the first half, played some of its best basketball of the season in the final two periods to hand the Pistons their first loss after four wins to open the season."It was just about playing hard," Harris said. "We didn't get off to the best start. We have been really struggling in the third quarter but tonight we came out with more aggressiveness. Points for me didn't matter. It was all about the win. We desperately needed this for our confidence's sake."Vince Carter and Josh Boone each scored 18 for New Jersey, which got its first home win after two losses. Boone also pulled down 14 rebounds.Iverson had 24 points and six assists after finally getting to suit up. Detroit played twice since the trade Monday with Denver that sent Chauncey Billups, Antonio McDyess and Cheikh Samb to the Nuggets for the nine-time All-Star. Iverson was not available for the first game and was not permitted to play the second because Billups had not completed his physical with the Nuggets.Richard Hamilton scored 22 points, while Tayshaun Prince added 19 points and 11 rebounds.It looked like an easy win for Detroit at the start.Iverson stepped right in, joining Hamilton in the Detroit backcourt, replacing Rodney Stuckey. He got a rousing cheer from the crowd at the Izod Center when he was introduced with the starters.Iverson immediately took over the game, factoring in the Pistons' first three scores. Iverson dished off to Hamilton for the game's first basket, scored on a finger-roll layup and kicked the ball out to Prince for a 3-pointer as Detroit took a 9-6 lead.Iverson played the entire opening quarter, scoring 11 points, making all three shots from the field, including a 3-pointer, while going 4-for-4 from the free throw line as the Pistons raced to a 27-14 lead."It was a good feeling for me," Iverson said. "I haven't been able to play for a while so it was good to get back on the basketball court. I'll try to get a little bit of my rust off."New Jersey cut the deficit to 44-39 at the half, thanks to eight points in the period from Boone.New Jersey, led by Harris, came back to take a 72-70 lead after three quarters.Badly outplayed by Iverson in their first-quarter matchup, Harris turned the tables in the third. Harris had 19 in the period, going 13-for-15 from the free throw line while forcing Iverson into four fouls. Iverson had a quiet quarter with only four points."I thought he showed unbelievable grit, fighting through, making plays, attacking the paint, having to guard Iverson," Nets coach Lawrence Frank said of Harris.In the fourth quarter, Boone scored on a dunk midway through to give New Jersey an 87-79 lead that Detroit never overcame.Hamilton nailed a 3-pointer with 41 seconds remaining to cut the Nets' lead to 98-94, only to have Harris answer back with a basket at the other end.Although his first game with Detroit ended in a loss, Iverson expects better things in the future."We had the game and we let it get away in the second half," Iverson said. "Overall, it was a great experience for me. I felt fine out there, and we only can get better."Game notesFrank said Stromile Swift might begin practicing next week. He has yet to play this season with a sore back. Chris Douglas-Roberts and Trenton Hassell were also inactive for the Nets. ... Walter Sharpe was the lone inactive for Detroit. ... Wallace was whistled for a technical foul with 5:47 remaining in the third for profanity-laced complaint when he failed to draw a foul call. ... Yi Jianlian fouled out for the Nets with 3:40 remaining. Carter also fouled out with 1:53 left. Harris' previous best was 27 points against Indiana on March 28. He was 20-of-24 from the free throw line. The 24 attempts ties the Nets single-game record held by Carter (2005) and John Williamson (1978). ... The Nets ended a seven-game losing streak against the Pistons. Related: michael jordan paul pierce celtics finals garnett walker bulls lebron usa olympics basketball kobe wade yao iverson mayo beasley rose shaq bird johnson heat lakers carter vc ai mj tmac 2k9 live 08 09 mvp reebok highlight the answer detroit pistons joe dumars rasheeed wallace chauency billups | |
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