Nets 99 – 76ers 93
PHILADELPHIA – In the first half, Vince Carter shot more like Nell Carter. In a game the Nets really truly had to have, Carter limped into halftime having missed 8-of-9 attempts, with all of six points to his credit.
So he got his right ankle re-taped. He had rolled it early on and, in his words, “just didn’t feel comfortable.” Well, maybe that tape will be what eventually holds the Nets’ season together.
Carter came out and did a 180. In directing the Nets’ 63-point second-half avalanche, Carter racked up 26 points to finish with 32 and the Nets dropped the Sixers, 99-93, in a critical Atlantic Division game.
“He showed that it is not only one half. He put us on his back and carried us,” said Jason Kidd (15 points, 6 assists 4 rebounds), who teamed with Carter to do much of the heavy lifting in a game-turning 26-10 run in the third quarter.
Carter insisted the ankle re-taping simply made him more comfortable. That, he insisted, was not the reason from his woeful first half. No, Carter gave a far more insightful, philosophical reason for his first half troubles.
“Damn things wouldn’t fall,” Carter said with a smile.
Can’t be more insightful or philosophical than that.
With the victory, that included massive bench efforts from Cliff Robinson (18 points) and Travis Best (14 points), the Nets, who are home to Miami tonight, stayed four games behind victorious Boston in the Atlantic but moved to within 1 ½ games of the Sixers, who received 37 points from NBA scoring leader Allen Iverson. The Sixers also got 10 points and eight rebounds from newly acquired Chris Webber, who looked lost at times but also fell victim to the defensive combo of Jason Collins and Robinson. Webber shot 4-of-18.
“There’s a lot of pride, not just individual pride, but in our team defense. It wasn’t just me guarding him. It was a team effort,” said Collins (eight points, eight rebounds).
“It’s a big win for us,” Robinson claimed after the Nets displayed impressive grit and perseverance while showing the Sixers how a big name can be acclimated into the team after a trade.
“This team is fighting for a spot just like we are, so this was big to let them know that we’re going to be fighting the whole way, too.”
The Nets were in a 51-42 ditch at 8:14 after Iverson and rookie Andre Iguodala bagged consecutive jumpers. But then the Nets – gasp! – made shots. Lots and lots of shots.
Starting with consecutive 3-pointers by Carter and Kidd, the Nets converted 10 of 13 attempts. With a perfect 5-of-5 showing beyond the arc in the third quarter, they held a 68-64 lead entering the fourth. Carter scored 14 points, Kidd had eight in the quarter.
“They create difficulty with Kidd and Carter in the backcourt,” Sixers coach Jim O’Brien understated.
“I got re-taped, believe it or not. I rolled my ankle early and I was kind of hesitant and real short on my shots. I got re-taped and just felt good and rejuvenated and ready to go,” said Carter, who then noted the big key: “We were just relentless as a team.”
That continued in the fourth, though the Sixers simply would not go away. A Kidd drive made it 85-79 at 3:18 – but Iverson responded with a 3-point play. Carter again seemed to put it out of reach with a trifecta – but Iverson duplicated that. Finally, Carter made two free throws for a 90-85 lead, the Sixers missed three shots and then the Nets tacked on three free throws.
“In order for us to get where we want to be, you’re going to have to win in the division and win on the road,” said coach Lawrence Frank. “And we were able to accomplish both those goals.”
