PHILADELPHIA (Ticker) -- The New Orleans Hornets believed Steve Smith could still play. Smith made believers out of the Philadelphia 76ers.
Smith came off the bench to join a barrage from 3-point range and score five of his 16 points in overtime as the Hornets bounced back with a 106-99 victory over the 76ers.
A member of the 2003 NBA champion San Antonio Spurs, Smith became a free agent and was not signed by any club during the offseason. When training camps began, the 34-year-old with the sweet shot and creaky knees did not have a team.
"I was up playing at Michigan State, going against Michigan State guys," Smith said. "I never lost my confidence. Basketball is a strange thing - if you don't play for a couple of games, people lose confidence in you."
But the Hornets lost reserve guard Courtney Alexander to a torn Achilles tendon in an exhibition game and signed Smith to deepen their bench.
"I was car pooling," he said. "I was at home being a dad and they called me up. They contacted me because of the injuries to (Jamal) Mashburn and Courtney Alexander. They needed some help. I was happy they called me."
Smith credited his experience to making the easy transition from driving his kids to school to driving to the rim.
"Being a veteran, you always know how to be ready," Smith said. "The good thing about it now is that I can watch and see what we need and what can I go out there and do. I want to go out there and try to contribute, and help win ballgames."
The 6-8 Smith hit a 3-pointer in the third quarter, when the Hornets erased most of a 10-point deficit. He scored eight points in the first five-plus minutes of the fourth quarter as New Orleans opened an 87-76 lead.
And after a 3-pointer by Philadelphia's Eric Snow capped a comeback that forced overtime, Smith again took charge. He flipped in a layup to open the extra session and followed Darrell Armstrong's 3-pointer with one of his own, giving New Orleans a 97-89 lead with 2:38 to go.
"Usually in overtime, the team that's more aggressive is usually going to get the calls and get the plays, and we were more aggressive," Smith said. "We talked about being aggressive, not sitting back on our heels and not letting them come at us."
The Hornets made an astounding 13-of-30 3-pointers, including 6-of-11 by Baron Davis, who scored 37 points. Smith was 3-of-3 from the arc.
David Wesley scored 12 points and Darrell Armstrong added 11 before both fouled out trying to contain 76ers superstar Allen Iverson. They did a good job, however, as Iverson scored just three of his 29 points in the fourth quarter and overtime.
The Hornets improved to 4-1, the best record in the Eastern Conference. They are 2-0 in overtime, having also beaten Atlanta in their opener.
"We're finding ways to win ballgames," Davis said. "We're keeping ourselves in it. We had a little slip in Atlanta and bounced back (tonight) in a tough atmosphere against a tough team and we were able to win the basketball game."
The game was a rematch of last season's first-round playoff series won by Philadelphia in six games. Including that series, the road team has won the last four meetings.
While New Orleans was burying shots from the arc, Philadelphia struggled. Iverson was just 1-of-9 from the circle and 9-of-24 overall.
"Nine is too many for me, especially when I'm not making them," Iverson said. "But if I could do it over again, I'd let a couple of those go. But some of them I was satisfied with."
After Smith's fourth-quarter flurry, Philadelphia rallied. Glenn Robinson had a pair of 3-pointers to cut the deficit to 87-82 with 4:10 left, and Kenny Thomas had a jump hook and two free throws to make it 89-86 with 1:57 to play.
Snow, who collected 11 points and 12 assists, tied it with his first 3-pointer of the season. But he missed a jumper between a pair of misses by Davis.
"I thought that the energy would carry us over into overtime, but they came out and hit a quick two or three baskets and really took it out of us," Sixers coach Randy Ayers said.
The Sixers opened the second half with a 13-2 run that provided a 55-45 lead before Davis made four 3-pointers to pull the Hornets within 67-66 entering the fourth period.
"I hit like three in a row," Davis said. "Once I hit that third one, I knew that if I got another good look, I was going to keep taking them and that's what I was able to do, just keep shooting."
P.J. Brown swept 12 boards for the Hornets. Robinson scored 20 points and Thomas added 15 and 16 rebounds for the Sixers.
