76ers Lose Iverson but Not the Game

The Philadelphia 76ers were missing the NBA’s leading scorer and two other starters. So they just worked harder.

Marc Jackson scored a season-high 23 points, Aaron McKie added 21 and the 76ers beat the Raptors, 81-75, Wednesday night at Toronto despite playing without Allen Iverson, Glenn Robinson and Derrick Coleman.

“People expected us to lose without our key guys, especially with us not having Allen,” guard Eric Snow said. “We just wanted to outwork them, to give ourselves a chance, and that’s what we did.”

Iverson missed his first game in more than a year because of a swollen right knee, ending a streak of 110 consecutive games played. The 76ers didn’t say when he would return.

Robinson (sprained left ankle) and Coleman (strained left knee) also did not play.

“When given the opportunity, I will produce,” said Jackson, who made 10 of 16 shots. “We just outworked them today. That was it.”

Vince Carter scored 20 points for the Raptors, who lost at home for the first time after winning their first five games there. Carter missed three jumpers in the final two minutes, however, as the Raptors failed to close the gap.

Houston 85, Golden State 83 -- Yao Ming scored 15 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter at Houston as the Rockets handed the Warriors their fourth loss in a row.

Houston led by one point with 15 seconds left, but Yao missed two free throws. Kelvin Cato made a foul shot with two seconds remaining for the final margin. Steve Francis also had 23 points for Houston.

Clifford Robinson had a season-high 23 points for the Warriors.

New Orleans 81, Boston 73 -- Baron Davis scored 17 points, and P.J. Brown added 12 points and 16 rebounds at Boston to lead the Hornets to their fourth consecutive victory.

Paul Pierce had 23 points for the Celtics, who have lost six of their last nine games.

Detroit 99, Memphis 92 -- Chauncey Billups scored a season-high 33 points, including 14 during a 19-3 third-quarter run, to lead the Pistons at Memphis, Tenn.

Billups, who had 25 points in the second half, not only sparked Detroit’s big run but also thwarted Memphis’ comeback attempts with clutch baskets in the fourth quarter.

Mike Miller and Lorenzen Wright had 18 points apiece for Memphis.

Washington 106, Cleveland 95 -- Gilbert Arenas scored 25 points, Etan Thomas had a career-high 18 points and 10 rebounds, and the Wizards kept LeBron James winless on the road with a victory at Washington.

James scored a career-high 28 points on 10-for-18 shooting with eight assists and seven rebounds as Cleveland fell to 0-7 on the road.

Sacramento 118, Utah 110 -- Peja Stojakovic scored 30 points and the Kings never trailed in handing the Jazz its first home loss of the season.

Carlos Arroyo had 25 points and eight assists for the Jazz.

Portland 94, Miami 93 -- Qyntel Woods made two free throws with 0.4 seconds left to lift the Trail Blazers at Portland.

Rasheed Wallace had 21 points and 11 rebounds for the Blazers. Eddie Jones had 26 points for the Heat.

Denver 94, Milwaukee 86 -- Andre Miller scored 17 points and made a basket in the lane with 2:33 left, capping an 8-0 run, to lead the Nuggets at Denver.

Tim Thomas scored 25 points for the Bucks.