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Iverson takes charge as 76ers beat Kings

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Allen Iverson came off a screen in the second half and, fading to his left, hit a three-pointer.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Allen Iverson came off a screen in the second half and, fading to his left, hit a three-pointer.

Running downcourt, 76ers coach Eddie Jordan yelled instructions at Iverson, who in response shook his head as if to say, I got this.

Last night at Arco Arena, Iverson played more minutes (33) than the doctor recommends (28 to 30), but scored enough points (20) to help the Sixers beat the Sacramento Kings, 116-106. It was their second win in as many games.

The victory gave the Sixers (9-22) back-to-back wins for the first time since they beat the Milwaukee Bucks on Oct. 30 and the New York Knicks on Oct. 31.

Sacramento slipped to 14-17.

Iverson's 20 points - 13 in the second half - were second only to Lou Williams' 22, but reserve Rodney Carney's quartet of three pointers - three in the second half, two in the fourth quarter - keyed a crucial early-fourth quarter run that put the Sixers ahead, 90-81.

Carney finished with 14 points in 15 minutes, reserve power forward Elton Brand scored 14, and swingman Andre Iguodala finished with 19 points and 9 assists.

After starting the game making only a third of their shots, the Sixers finished it shooting 52.5 percent from the field.

The Kings, without Chester native Tyreke Evans and his 20.3 points per game, were led by rookie Omri Casspi and Donte Greene, who scored 21 points apiece.

For the first quarter and a half, there were very few possessions on which the Kings didn't score. If they didn't make the first shot, they were getting another, and chances were good they would score on that one.

At the end of the first quarter, they were shooting 50.0 percent from the field to the Sixers' 31.8 percent, and had grabbed five offensive rebounds.

Early in the second quarter, the Kings were up by 34-21 and were shooting 53.0 percent from the field and outrebounding the Sixers by nearly 10 rebounds.

The Kings looked as if they would run past these Sixers: a few more easy buckets, a couple of more defensive stops and the game would have been a runaway victory.

But then the game took a turn as sharp as an Iverson crossover. The Sixers had started out shooting 7 for 22 from the field; they finished the first half shooting 13 for 21 and turning a 13-point deficit into a 50-all game at intermission.

Last night's game in Sacramento ended too late for this edition. For coverage, go to http://go.philly.com/sixers

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