PHILADELPHIA, May 20 -- In the seventh game of a thrilling series Sunday, Allen Iverson was just a bit better than Vince Carter and led the Philadelphia 76ers to an 88-87 victory over the Toronto Raptors and a long-awaited berth in the Eastern Conference finals.
The top-seeded 76ers were not assured of their deepest excursion into the playoffs in 16 years until Carter -- who attended graduation ceremonies at North Carolina on Sunday morning -- missed a 20-footer at the buzzer.
Iverson had 21 points while making just eight of 27 shots, but handed out a career-high 16 assists. Once considered a selfish ballhog, the NBA Most Valuable Player made plenty of proper decisions with the ball.
Trusting his teammates like never before, Iverson repeatedly passed out of double-teams to give Aaron McKie, Eric Snow and Jumaine Jones open shots. The trio responded with 51 points, which was just enough to hold off tenacious Toronto.
"For the first time in my life, I'm on a team," said Iverson, who played most of the second half with a bruised tailbone.
"It was a very satisfying win for this franchise," Sixers coach Larry Brown said.
McKie made eight of 16 shots and scored 22 points, including a pair of jumpers over Carter on consecutive possessions that gave Philadelphia an 88-82 lead with 2:56 remaining.
Jones, forced into the starting lineup by the injury to George Lynch, was six of nine and scored 16 points, including six in the final period. Snow, pushed out of the starting lineup by an injured right foot, scored 13 points.
They helped Iverson barely win his duel of rising superstars with Carter, who scored 20 points on just six-of-18 shooting and also beat the double-teams with nine assists.
Carter drew criticism for going to his graduation in Chapel Hill on the day of the most important game of his career. But he traveled by private jet and did not seem affected by the trip.
In the series, Iverson averaged 33.7 points and 6.9 assists and scored 50 points twice. Carter averaged 30.4 points and 6.0 rebounds and scored 50 points once.
Antonio Davis had 23 points and nine rebounds for the Raptors, who finally lost an elimination game. They won the last two games of the first round to upset the New York Knicks and took Game 6 on Friday.
After guaranteeing a win, Dikembe Mutombo had 10 points and 17 rebounds for the Sixers, who host second-seeded Milwaukee on Tuesday.
After McKie's shots, the Sixers did not score again and played just enough defense. They also got two offensive rebounds to help kill the clock.
A jumper by Davis made it 88-84 with 2:34 to go. The teams traded misses and the Raptors did not get back the ball until less than a minute remained. Dell Curry's three-pointer cut the deficit to 88-87 and Iverson and Snow missed jumpers before Toronto rebounded and called timeout with 3.6 seconds to play.
The Sixers had a foul to give and McKie gave it on Carter with two seconds remaining. The Raptors called another timeout and Carter came from right to left, took the inbounds pass, turned and fired off the rim.
Two free throws by Iverson gave the Sixers the lead for good at 67-65 with 1:15 left in the third quarter. In the final period, he assisted on Philadelphia's first four baskets, including a jumper by Jones that made it 77-74 with 8:59 remaining.
Iverson's only basket of the fourth quarter was a floater in the lane that gave Philadelphia an 81-76 lead with 6:33 left. He set up Snow's jumper, but a basket by Charles Oakley pulled the Raptors within 84-82 with just under four minutes to go.
Carter came off McKie to help double-team Iverson and paid for it both times. Iverson set up the first one and Snow the second for a six-point bulge with less than three minutes left.
The Sixers shot 43 percent and made 22 of 32 free throws. They held a 41-35 rebounding advantage, including 15-8 on the offensive end.
Oakley and Chris Childs scored 11 points each and Oakley pulled down 10 rebounds for the Raptors, who shot 48 percent and were 13 of 17 from the line.
