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Slumping Nets lose another close one

Feb 6, 2007 - 6:21 AM PHILADELPHIA (Ticker) -- Andre Iguodala made the most of his chance, but Vince Carter didn't.

Iguodala hit a big 3-pointer in overtime and Carter and the New Jersey Nets could not take advantage of a second chance as the Philadelphia 76ers posted a 100-98 victory.

Nursing a one-point lead in overtime, Iguodala took a cross-court pass from Andre Miller and buried the shot from the arc to give Philadelphia a 97-93 lead with 1:06 to play.

"Everyone has taken a big shot at some level of their careers," Iguodala said. "It was just a way of trying to will your way down the stretch." The 76ers trailed by as many as 11 in the third quarter and were down, 93-93, with three minutes left in overtime but repeatedly found a way to claw their way back.

"We just kept digging and digging and tried to put four or six point runs together," Iguodala said. "We got two baskets here and two baskets there and we held them to one shot on the defensive end. We're just out there competing and try to get back into the game."

Joe Smith made a jumper with 42 seconds to play to give the 76ers a 99-94 lead before Carter made a layup six seconds later and Jason Kidd made two free throws with nine seconds to go to pull the Nets within 99-98.

Philadelphia got exactly what it wanted on its ensuing possession as the Nets had to foul Kyle Korver. An 87-percent career free-throw shooter who was shooting 91.5 percent from the line this season, Korver missed the first of two. He made the second to extend the lead to 100-98, leaving the Nets a chance to tie without needing a 3-pointer.

Kidd and Carter had other ideas though. Kidd pushed the ball up the left side, leaving it for Carter and setting a screen, Carter took a wide-open shot from the arc, but it bounced hard off the back of the rim as time expired.

"It's a judgement decision. He was wide open," Nets coach Lawrence Frank said. "He's made that shot before and we trust Vince. You can't just be with a guy when he makes a shot. You can go for the tie or the win. He was wide open and we went for the win and it just didn't go in."

Carter's miss was one of many on the night as he scored 23 points but was just 8-of-23 from the field. Kidd had 14 points, seven rebounds and eight assists but was only 5-of-16.

"It was a great look. I thought it was good," Carter said. "I thought it was going down. It was a little long but it was right on target. I can't be mad about that one."

"We're up 11 in the third and we let a lead get away from us," Kidd said. "This is something that isn't new to us, we've been in position quite a few times. We had a great look at the end and it didn't go in for us."

Iguodala scored 23 points and added 15 assists, Miller had 18 points and Samuel Dalembert had 14 and 17 rebounds for Philadelphia, which improved to 11-15 since trading away superstar Allen Iverson.

"It's great. It is just fun playing basketball on this team - it really is," Korver said. "Going to practice is fun. Playing the games is fun. We've turned it around. We're not winning as frequently as we'd like to, but we're doing so much better. Everybody is growing and finding new roles. It's a lot of fun to be a part of."