BRYANT FINDS CITY OF BROTHERLY HATE PHILLY TAUNTS FORMER SON IN LAKERS DEFEAT PHILADELPHIA 112, LAKERS 97.Byline: Howard Beck Staff Writer PHILADELPHIA - Welcome back, Kobe? Not so welcome, it seems. Mitch ``Wild Thing'' Williams would find a friendlier greeting party awaiting him here than the Lakers'Philadelphia-reared star did Wednesday night. Taunted by the hometown fans who once embraced him. Exploited by Philadelphia 76ers coach Larry Brown Larry Brown may refer to:
And at the end of it all, benched for six long minutes of the fourth quarter while the Lakers fell hopelessly behind on the way to a 112-97 loss at First Union Center. Abused on defense, Kobe Bryant Kobe Bean Bryant (born July 23 1978) is an American All-Star shooting guard in the National Basketball Association (NBA) who plays for the Los Angeles Lakers. watched Iverson bust out "Bust Out" is the twenty-third episode of the HBO original series The Sopranos and the tenth of the show's second season. It was written by Frank Renzulli, Robin Green and Mitchell Burgess, directed by John Patterson and originally aired on Sunday March 19 2000. for 40 points. Subdued on offense, Bryant scored 18 points, his lowest total since Dec. 30. And his Lakers lost a major East-West showdown, on national TV, in the city he once owned, with eight family members and friends in the crowd. ``I'm upset losing, period. I don't care
"Don't Care" is a 1994 (see 1994 in music) single by American death metal band Obituary. where it is,'' he said. ``It's good to come and play at home, but I really don't care.'' And then maybe Bryant wasn't really all here anyway. By the looks of his play, he left a huge chunk of himself back in New Jersey, where he chased Stephon Marbury Stephon Xavier Marbury (born February 20, 1977 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American professional basketball player, currently playing point guard with the New York Knicks. Marbury was an NBA All-Star in 2001 and 2003 and an All-NBA Third Team member in 2003. around for four quarters and an overtime on Tuesday. Two consecutive nights of trying to keep pace with jitterbug jitterbug Dance variation of the two-step in which couples swing, balance, and twirl in standardized patterns to syncopated music in ⁴⁄₄ time. It originated in the U.S. in the mid 1930s and became internationally popular in the 1940s. scorers clearly took its toll. The rest of the Lakers weren't up to the task either. Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal (pronounced "shak-KEEL") (born March 6, 1972 in Newark, New Jersey), frequently referred to simply as Shaq, is an American professional basketball player, generally regarded as one of the most dominant in the National Basketball Association (NBA). , continuing his comeback from a foot injury, got 29 points and 11 rebounds but wasn't able to fully take advantage of the injury-depleted Sixers, who were playing without centers Matt Geiger Matthew (Matt) Allen Geiger (September 10 1969 in Salem, Massachusetts) is a retired American professional basketball player who played in the National Basketball Association. (NBA NBA abbr. 1. National Basketball Association 2. National Boxing Association NBA (US) n abbr (= National Basketball Association) → Basketball-Dachverband (= suspension) and Theo Ratliff (stress fracture stress fracture n. A fatigue fracture of bone caused by repeated application of a heavy load, such as the constant pounding on a surface by runners, gymnasts, and dancers. in wrist). The Lakers committed 17 turnovers, leading to 17 easy points for the Sixers. The momentum shifted Philadelphia's way early and the Lakers never caught up, losing for the first time in five games. ``I don't think we matched their intensity tonight,'' coach Phil Jackson said. ``I thought that was our problem. At the beginning, they came out with a lot of intensity; we were struggling to catch up the whole game.'' For certain, the marathon session at New Jersey the night before took its toll on Bryant and everyone else. The Sixers hit 50 percent of their field goals and scored 20 points off the fast break. ``It was more so the mistakes we made,'' said Brian Shaw, who started in place of Ron Harper (sore left knee). Mistakes like the inbounds in·bounds adj. 1. Basketball Involving putting the ball into play by passing it from out of bounds to a teammate on the court. 2. Sports Within the designated boundaries. pass Iverson stole from Mark Madsen in the backcourt, leading to an easy score early in the fourth, when the Sixers were extending their lead from 10 points to 18 in three minutes. Soon after, the ``M-V-P'' chants were raining from the rafters and Iverson was smiling and wagging his tongue on the way to an easy fastbreak layup past Tyronn Lue. And Bryant? He was on the bench, returning only when there were six minutes left and the Lakers were trailing by 12. Normally, this would be his time to play savior, to take over the offense. Instead, he missed the only shot he attempted, going scoreless in the fourth. For the game, Bryant took just 13 shots - 10 below his average and the least he'd attempted since opening night. And Iverson, whom Bryant had smothered smoth·er v. smoth·ered, smoth·er·ing, smoth·ers v.tr. 1. a. To suffocate (another). b. To deprive (a fire) of the oxygen necessary for combustion. 2. in the previous three meetings - all Lakers victories - got sweet revenge, making 14 of 29 shots. ``It wasn't Kobe's best game, we'll just say that,'' Jackson said. Nor was Bryant at his freshest. ``He shouldn't be (tired), he's 22,'' O'Neal said. Bryant said he tried to conserve energy by involving his teammates early and he picked up seven assists. He credited Brown with devising a great game plan to slow him on offense and free up Iverson at the other end. But he's not used to any of this. Not getting outscored and outplayed by Iverson. Not getting booed during introductions in his hometown. And not being subjected to jeering chants of ``Ko-be, Ko-be.'' ``They can say 'Kobe, Kobe' all they want,'' Bryant said. ``But the fact of the matter is after they say `Kobe,' they've gotta say `ring.' So it doesn't matter.'' GUARD DUTY The following is how Kobe Bryant and Allen Iverson matched up head to head in their last four meetings Pts. Rebs. Assts. Feb. 20, 2000 (87-84 Lakers) Kobe Bryant 18 37 Allen Iverson 16 5 8 March 31, 2000 (100-88 Lakers) Kobe Bryant 10 9 5 Allen Iverson 15 5 6 Dec. 5, 2000 (96-85 Lakers) Kobe Bryant 36 1 4 Allen Iverson 27 5 3 Feb. 14, 2000 (112-97 76ers) Bryant 18 7 7 Iverson 40 4 9 CAPTION(S): 3 photos, box Photo: (1 -- color) no caption (Kobe Bryant and 76ers player) Chris Gardner/Associated Press (2 -- color) Philadelphia 76ers guard Allen Iverson, front, drives past Lakers center Shaquille O'Neal. Associated Press (3) Philadelphia's Allen Iverson exploited a tired Kobe Bryant and Lakers defense. Chris Gardner/Associated Press Box: GUARD DUTY (see text) |
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