Allen Iverson was healthy enough to dazzle the Sacramento Kings and push the Philadelphia 76ers to the top of the NBA.
Iverson scored 46 points with a whirling array of beautiful shots, and Aaron McKie, who had a triple-double, hit a 3-pointer to break a tie with 39 seconds left in overtime as the 76ers earned the NBA's best record with a 107-104 victory over the Kings on Saturday.
The game matched the teams with the NBA's best records entering January, but the 76ers (21-8) jumped ahead early with a blistering first quarter and never trailed the Kings (20-8) despite several nip-and-tuck minutes in regulation and a tense overtime.
Iverson, who also had nine rebounds and nine assists, drove the lane and passed to McKie in the corner for the go-ahead shot. Sacramento couldn't score on its last two possessions, and Jon Barry's 3-pointer with a second left was short.
With Iverson's artistry and a dominant rebounding performance, the Sixers won their NBA-best 14th road game and snapped Sacramento's nine-game home winning streak. McKie had 19 points, 14 assists and 10 rebounds in Philadelphia's first win at Arco Arena in 11 years.
Iverson missed a game last week with a dislocated right shoulder and also is nursing a left hip pointer and a sore right elbow. But the 1999 NBA scoring champion used the nationally televised meeting of the NBA's conference leaders to show he's healthy and ready to make the Sixers better than they've ever been in his career.
Peja Stojakovic scored a career-high 33 points for the Kings, and he hit four straight free throws in overtime which tied it at 104 with 54 seconds left. Sacramento is 13-2 at home, with both losses coming in overtime.
Chris Webber, fighting a case of stomach flu, had 29 points and 10 rebounds but missed a potential game-winning jumper with five seconds left in regulation.
After trailing the entire game, the Kings outscored the Sixers 32-15 in the fourth quarter thanks to 11 points by Stojakovic _ including three straight 3-pointers _ and Bobby Jackson's solid defense on Iverson.
Sacramento pulled within one with five minutes to play and tied it at 96 on Webber's driving layup with 2:01 left. It was tied at 98 when Webber missed a jumper with five seconds left, and Jackson's tip attempt missed by an inch.
Philadelphia got the last shot of regulation, but Iverson's 17-footer was off.
The Sixers opened the game in an offensive groove, hitting 14 of their first 20 shots and steadily opening an 18-point lead in the first quarter. Sacramento chipped back in the next two quarters, but they never pulled within striking distance of the lead until the final minutes. Notes:@ McKie and Philadelphia coach Larry Brown received technical fouls late in the first half for protesting a foul call on McKie. Brown nearly came to half-court to scream at referee Jason Phillips. ... The Sixers also were irked that a backcourt violation wasn't called on Jackson with 24 seconds left in regulation. The referees said Jackson didn't have possession of the inbounds pass before he fumbled it into the backcourt. ... The 76ers hadn't won at Arco Arena since March 1, 1989, when Charles Barkley had a triple-double.
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