Allen Iverson’s first game back with the Philadelphia 76ers (5–16) came to an unfortunate end on Monday night with a 93–83 loss to the Denver Nuggets (16–5).

The Sixers came into the game on a nine-game losing streak; their last win was by one point against the 8–11 Charlotte Bobcats in October. The Bobcats are a team that played the embarrassing role of being the victims of the lowly New Jersey Nets. The Nets beat the Bobcats to get their first win of the season after making history with the worst ever season start at 0–18.

After three neck-and-neck quarters of competitive ball the Sixers defense could do nothing to stop a red-hot Nuggets offense that produced 30 points in the fourth quarter to the Sixers’ 18.

The Sixers failed to score a point in the fourth until eight minutes to go when Thaddeus Young dropped in a layup with an assist from Elton Brand. But by then it was too late as the Nuggets were already ahead by 14.

Anti-Climax

Monday’s loss by the Sixers was a bit of a letdown for many basketball fans. With all the hype surrounding Iverson’s return and his surprise appearance in the starting lineup against one of his former teams, a win for the Sixers would have gone a long way toward getting their season back on track.

But not a whole lot could have realistically been expected of “The Answer”—who has not played competitive ball for nearly a month following his departure from the Memphis Grizzlies and a brief one-week retirement.

Indeed, it was impressive enough that Iverson was not only part of the starting lineup, but he also racked up 11 points and a team high six assists in over 37 minutes of playing time. Not bad at all for a past-prime 34-year-old!

Iverson’s return to Philadelphia was certainly a welcomed one. The crowd went wild when he was introduced in the starting lineup as the “6-foot guard from Georgetown” and he knelt down to kiss the center court 76ers logo at the Wachovia Center.

After several missed shots A.I. had his first bucket of the night from a wild tip-in after his missed field goal resulted in an offensive rebound, and again the crowd went wild.

The Sixers came out strong in the first two quarters, taking a 26–20 lead over the Nuggets in the first. And if Iverson’s return and plentiful playing time were not enough to rally fans, Andre Iguodala’s 94-foot bomb at the buzzer to end the half certainly was.

Iguodala carried the team in a phenomenal night of jump shots and dunks for 31 points, and took plenty of liberties from deep going 4–10 in 3-point attempts. Iverson on the other hand did not shoot a single three.

The Sixers’ starting lineup saw almost all of the action on Monday night and that was invariably part of the problem running into the fourth quarter. Willie Green was the only Sixers’ benchman to score on the night with two points in just 18 minutes of play.

The Nuggets had much more support from their bench with three players seeing over 20 minutes of play and had a combined bench score of 29 points. Ty Lawson turned in a strong performance with 12 points, six rebounds, and four assists.

Chauncey Billups was the Nuggets team leader going 8–15 in field goals for 31 points, including a perfect 11–11 in free throws.

The Sixers move on to play one of Iverson’s other brief flirts—the 8–12 Detroit Pistons, on Wednesday at home.

Sixers Lose to Nuggets in A.I. Return

Miami Heat Move to 3—1 Over Boston Celtics With OT Win

Magic Rout Hawks to Hang on for Game 6

Rose Lifts Bulls to 3—0 Over Pacers

Knicks Fend Off Late 76ers Surge for Fifth Straight Win