We have seen Iverson take over when playoff time rolls around, and this year is no exception. Iverson was named the NBA Western Conference Player of the Week this past week, his third time this year, and looking at his numbers it is not surprising. In his last five games, AI is averaging over 28 points, eight assists and three steals. Even more impressive than those numbers is the fact that he is shooting a scorching 49% from the field during that span. He has proved himself to be the leader of this young Denver side, and has also showed that he still has the ability to carry a team, much as he did back in his years in Philadelphia.

However, unlike his glory days with the Sixers, Iverson is not without help. On the season, there are four players averaging double figures in points in addition to Iverson, with Carmelo Anthony leading the way with 25.8. Back when Iverson led the Sixers to the NBA finals in 2001, there were only two other players with double digits in points, led by Dikembe Mutumbo with only 11.7. But, not only is Iverson getting more offensive support this season, his teammates are also stepping up at the right time.

Obviously Carmelo is a great player to have on the court in the clutch, but the Nugget who is stepping it up the most late in the season is JR Smith. He is averaging over 17 points as a substitute in his past three games, five points above his season average, and seems to be ready to provide a spark from the bench in the post-season.

In the playoffs, it often happens that one player will carry his team to victory. Last year’s incredible performance by LeBron James in the Eastern Conference Finals is the most recent example of such heroics. If the past few weeks are any indication, Allen Iverson is still capable of fireworks of his own, and don’t be surprised if he posts some big numbers. But, fortunately for the Nuggets, if he doesn’t, his team might still be able to pull out a win.

Green had a career night, scoring 35 points on 14-21 shooting and pulling down 10 rebounds, as the Sonics managed to topple the Nuggets in double overtime. He scored the five points of the second extra session, helping the Sonics pull away down the stretch.

It’s bad news for the Nuggets as they desperately need wins now, particularly in their upcoming match at Golden State. While Hoya fans couldn’t be happier with Jeff Green’s performance last night, they have to be a little worried about Denver’s postseason hopes. Let’s see if Allen can’t pull out a couple key victories down the stretch to earn a chance for that elusive championship ring.

The first time these teams met, I mentioned in the comments that Jeff Green’s game doesn’t show up particularly well in the box score. Well, I was wrong last night. Look:

If you look back to the very beginning of Georgetown’s rise to power, Maryland and Georgetown used to play every season before the head to head rivalry evaporated. In the early 1980s, Georgetown started playing DePaul, and those games were always very intense. In fact, in 1984, the Hoyas actually lost by two at DePaul. That was their only non Big East defeat for two seasons. During that same time period, the Hoyas began a series with UNLV which showcased two of the most athletic teams in the country.

Then in the early 1990’s the Hoyas started to square off against Memphis. These meetings were always very enjoyable games because of the high entertainment value, and they were especially enjoyable for Georgetown fans because the Hoyas never lost to Memphis in their five regular season meetings from 1994-1998.

Two of these Memphis match-ups stick out in the memories of Hoya fans, 1994-95 and 1995-96. It’s probably not a coincidence that these two memorable games were played in the two years of Allen Iverson’s career. The first one came in December of 1994, when Iverson was a freshman. Last week, we talked about that game, in which George Butler made a three-pointer at the buzzer of regulation to force overtime, where the Hoyas managed to hold on to win by three.

In February of the following year at the Capital Centre, Memphis and Georgetown went at it again. This time instead of drama, the game was highlighted by the spectacular. For the first 10 minutes of the game it seemed like every basket was either a thunderous dunk or a long three-pointer. The fans were oohing and aahing from the opening tip, and in a strange way, it was sort of like a high-class street ball game. The Hoyas eventually prevailed behind 30 points from Iverson and 27 from Othella Harrington. The Hoyas led by one at halftime, but outscored the Tigers in the second half 40-20.

This Saturday, ten years after their last meeting, Georgetown and Memphis will reignite their rivalry. Just like a decade ago, the two teams will feature some of the top players in the country, and just like a decade ago, athleticism will be on display for basketball fans who have a rooting interest or not. If everything goes according to plan for Hoya fans, the result will also resemble those games from ten years ago.

The Hoyas trailed by five points in the final moments of regulation, but Allen Iverson stole the ball and made a coast to coast layup to cut the lead to three. Georgetown got the ball back down by three in the final seconds. George Butler hit a three pointer at the buzzer to force overtime, and Georgetown prevailed in the extra session.

Jerome Williams led the Hoyas with 16 points and 14 rebounds on a night where all five Hoya starters scored in double figures. Sadly, this was the last major impact George Butler had with the Hoyas as he left the team four games later. It would have been fun to see how good that team might have been if Butler had managed to stay with the Hoyas during his senior season.

We only counted pairs that were on the same team for at least 50 games, so no Dikembe with AI in 2001. We didn’t count any pairs in which a player averaged fewer than 5.0 PPG or if the player was the third of three Big East players on the same team. And if the same pair played together for more than one season, we only included their highest total output. That enough disclaimers for you?

As expected, most of these combos include one or two Hoyas, but there are some surprises in there as well - Check out #3 on the list!

If you feel like we’ve forgotten a significant pair, let us know in the comments.