Sixers Hold Back Pistons

Allen Iverson looked down at his swollen elbow in disbelief. Just when he thought it couldn't get any more gruesome, it started bleeding.

Iverson scored 30 points anyway Saturday night to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a 100-94 victory over the Detroit Pistons.

"I couldn't do anything with it the second half, it was pretty bad," said Iverson, who scored 26 points in the first half and only one basket in the second. "It's tough because it's my shooting shoulder and my shooting elbow and my toe. That's my speed and my shot."

Besides the injured elbow, Iverson has a partially torn rotator cuff and broken big toe. He's still led the Sixers within two victories of their first 50-win season since 1989-90 with two to play.

The Sixers also pulled within a game of the Knicks for the third spot in the East and moved 1 1/2 games in front of idle Charlotte for the fourth spot, which would give them homecourt advantage in the first round.

Grant Hill lasted only 16 minutes on his sprained left ankle and scored a season-low four points as the Pistons missed a chance to clinch a playoff berth. Hill spoke softly and looked very concerned while resting his foot in an ice bucket after he game.

"I tried, I tried," said Hill, who will likely have X-rays Sunday and won't play against Indiana. "I told (coach) I was hindering the team. I just couldn't move. I couldn't put any pressure on it."

George Lynch turned in a gritty performance with 17 points and 15 rebounds, but the Sixers still struggled to work Toni Kukoc into the offense and were sloppy at times with 22 turnovers.

With Hill watching from the bench in obious pain, a disjointed performance was good enough.

Wrapped in a white stocking-like cloth, Iverson's elbow was terribly swollen. He could barely straighten it, and he had to leave the game once because it was bleeding.

Iverson, who made 11 of 22 shots, took quite a beating, too.

Iverson, a former high school football star, took a shot in the head from Jerome Williams at the top of the key before setting up Tyrone Hill's layup for a 43-39 lead with 2:21 left in the second quarter. Moments later, he stood near the foul line with his clenched fists on his forehead and battered elbows in the air.

Maybe he was bluffing how much pain he was in, because he sprinted free on an inbounds play and drove down the middle for a 48-43 lead with 43.8 seconds left.

Moments later, Iverson was running back on defense with his eyes on the ball when he collided brutally with Williams, who was setting a pick. Williams, a fellow Georgetown alum, must have felt sorry for the little guy; he hugged Iverson so he wouldn't hit the deck.

Incredibly, Iverson was called for a foul.

Hill sprained his left ankle last Monday at Minnesota while scoring 36 points in a 102-100 loss. He had only 12 points in 31 minutes Wednesday night in a 90-73 victory over Miami.

Hill hobbled around for awhile in the first half as the Pistons trailed 50-47, then tried to come out and play in the third quarter. His ankle heavily taped, Hill's limp was even worse after halftime. He left the game with 9:47 left in the third and never returned.

"I'm not going to play him if he can barely move," Pistons coach George Irvine said.

The Sixers had already burned what was essentially a four-man team for three quick baskets for a 56-49 lead. With Hill out, they extended it to as many as 13 in the third and 17 in the fourth before a garbage-time rally produced the final margin.

Coach Larry Brown told his team about the Knicks' loss during a timeout, trying to remind them that the playoff fight is not over.

"If we don't recognize where Charlotte is, if we don't recognize we can catch the Knicks," Brown said, "that's crazy."

"I think he has a good point," Lynch said. "You have to play 48 minutes the right way and you can't let teams back in the game."

Notes