PHILADELPHIA (Ticker) -- Allen Iverson's best and worst performances of the season came 23 hours apart.
Iverson bounced back from his worst game of the season with a season-high 50 points as the Philadelphia 76ers pulled away for a 98-86 victory over the Atlanta Hawks.
Iverson leads the league in scoring but struggled in Friday's loss to Indiana, managing a season-low 12 points on 4-of-19 shooting. He responded against the less-talented Hawks with his sixth regular-season 50-point game and first since January 15, 2002.
"It's always special and it's always a good feeling to get in the groove like that," Iverson said. "But the most important thing is to win the basketball game. That will make you feel even better."
"We watched tape and tried to correct some things we didn't do last night," Sixers coach Randy Ayers said. "He was alive in the locker room tonight. He was active, but I didn't know he'd come out and have 50."
The Sixers improved to 4-2 when Iverson scores 50 points. They also have won all three postseason games in which he has reached 50.
Iverson made 20-of-34 shots from the floor, including 4-of-7 3-pointers. He had two free throws and a 3-pointer during a 10-0 run that opened the fourth quarter and gave Philadelphia an 82-70 cushion.
"My teammates knew that I was in a rhythm and they gave me the basketball in the spots that I needed it," Iverson said. "I just hit shots. The basket looked like an ocean tonight."
"Iverson wasn't missing anything," Atlanta forward Stephen Jackson said. "Everyone tried to guard him but just couldn't stop him. He hit almost every shot that he took. ... When a guy is shooting like that, there isn't too much you can do."
John Salmons also made a 3-pointer during the decisive spurt and finished with a career-high 13 points as the Sixers rolled to their fourth win in five home games.
Jason Terry scored 20 points and Shareef Abdur-Rahim added 17 and 10 rebounds for Atlanta, which has lost three of four.
Iverson made a pair of free throws with 66 seconds left to reach 50 and left the game 11 seconds later, falling one point shy of the NBA season high set by Orlando's Tracy McGrady.
Iverson bested Friday's dismal effort in the first quarter, scoring 13 points on 6-of-11 shooting. He had just one basket in the second but dominated the final 24 minutes with 32 points, including 19 in the fourth quarter.
"I think I really knew it in the third quarter," he said. "There is a certain feeling that you have when you take a shot, especially a jumper, and you know it's going in as soon as it leaves your hands."
Iverson made 6-of-7 shots in the third quarter and dominated the final period as he scored 14 consecutive points. He finished the stretch with a fadeaway jumper to give the Sixers a 93-80 lead with 2:54 left.
"We needed it," Ayers said. "It wasn't like it was a blowout game. I don't know if I would have left him in a long time if we were up by a large amount. Probably not. But we needed his points and he gave us a phenomenal effort tonight."
