Philadelphia star Allen Iverson led his 76ers to an 85-81 victory over rival Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers in a showdown between the National Basketball Association's leading scorers.
Iverson overcame shooting difficulties in the fourth quarter to finish the night with 34 points, including the game-winning jump shot with 22 seconds to go. Bryant missed a jumper in the final five seconds, and Iverson made two free throws to seal the Sixers' victory.
Bryant leads the league in scoring, averaging nearly 35 points per game, followed by Iverson who averages nearly 30. But Philly's defense kept Bryant in check Friday, holding him to only 17 points.
The floundering New York Knicks remained winless under new head coach Larry Brown, falling 86-84 to the Golden State Warriors for their fifth straight loss in the new NBA season. Adonal Foyle scored the go-ahead basket with 49 seconds left in regulation time to lift the Warriors at home.
Washington's Gilbert Arenas netted 32 points and Caron Butler added a season-high 24 as the Wizards crushed the Seattle SuperSonics 137-96. It is Washington's highest point total at home since 2000.
Other NBA winners Friday were the Cavaliers, Pacers, Spurs, Mavericks, Jazz, Kings and Pistons.
The Cleveland Cavaliers out-hustled Memphis to beat the Grizzlies 89-70, the Indiana Pacers overpowered the New Jersey Nets 102-90, and the defending champion San Antonio Spurs shellacked the Boston Celtics 103-82. The Dallas Mavericks defeated the Charlotte Bobcats 98-88, the Utah Jazz knocked off the Toronto Raptors 99-84, the Sacramento Kings beat up the Denver Nuggets 101-85, and the Detroit Pistons edged the Portland Trail Blazers 84-81.
Some information for this report provided by AP and Reuters.
