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PHILADELPHIA — Andre Iguodala snapped a tie game with five straight points in the final 90 seconds to help the Philadelphia 76ers storm back from 15 points down and stun the Boston Celtics 92-83 on Friday night in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
The Sixers were a team reborn in the second half and played like a squad that refused to roll over for the championship-tested Celtics. They tied the series at 2-2 and guaranteed a return home for one more game.
Iguodala, one of the more maligned athletes in recent Philadelphia history, put the Sixers ahead 85-83 and buried a 3-pointer for a five-point lead.
Iguodala scored 16 points, Evan Turner had 16 and Lou Williams added 15.
Kevin Garnett had his first bad outing in an otherwise monster series with nine points. Paul Pierce had 24 points and Rajon Rondo 15 points and 15 assists.
Blake, wife target of attacks on Twitter
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Lakers guard Steve Blake and his wife received multiple online threats after he missed a big shot late in Game 2 of Los Angeles’ second-round playoff series with Oklahoma City.
Blake has contacted the Lakers’ security team about the threats, the backup point guard said Friday during shootaround for Game 3.
Blake, who won an NCAA title at Maryland, rarely tweets, but his wife is a frequent user of social media. The family has three young children.
“I hope your family gets murdered,” read one post that Kristen Blake re-tweeted with the comment, “Wow.”
Blake was a Lakers hero when he hit a huge 3-pointer during a victory over Denver in Game 4 of the first round, and he scored 19 points in Los Angeles’ Game 7 victory over the Nuggets. The veteran guard was taken aback by the online vitriol directed at him for just one shot.
“It is the unfortunate side of pro sports,” said Blake, who won an NCAA title at Maryland. “Everyone is criticizing, and sometimes people cross the line. But you’ve got to move past it, be the positive person, and I think that’s the approach me and my wife are trying to take with it.”
Kristen Blake tweeted that she blocked 500 people from viewing her account. She tweeted Friday: “I am deeply grateful & humbled by the outpouring of love, support, & most of all prayers for our family in light of recent events-THANK YOU!”
Steve Blake said he isn’t worried about the threats affecting his three sons. The oldest, Zachary, is only 5 years old.
“They don’t know what Twitter is,” Blake said. “There’s nothing that will stop me from protecting my kids no matter what. We’ll move past it and take the positive approach no matter what.”
Basketball
76ers rally, knot series
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Notre Dame outlasts Louisville in 5 overtimes
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ACM wins OT thriller
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O’Connell captures 4th title
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Gonzaga beats La Lumiere
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