PHILADELPHIA -- Allen Iverson cupped his hand to his left ear and asked to hear his favourite tune one more time. With that command, 20,000 roaring Philadelphia 76ers fans gave AI the standing ovation he earned by stamping himself as one of the franchises all-time greats. Iverson, emotional as he thanked former teammates and friends, had his No. 3 retired at halftime of Saturdays game against Washington. High above the Wells Fargo Center court, Iversons banner slipped between Maurice Cheeks No. 10 and Charles Barkleys No. 34. "They all wanted me to talk about how much yall loved me," Iverson said, "but trust me, the feeling was mutual." Iverson officially retired in October after last playing in 2010. He won four scoring titles for the Sixers and was the 2001 MVP when he led them to the NBA Finals. He never won a championship, the lone omission in a career that is destined for the Hall of Fame. The Sixers may as well have turned the arena into an AI museum. Four banners greeted fans at the main concourse entrance, and photos of him were plastered all around the arena. The merchandise stands sold Iverson jerseys for $130, and lower level tickets were going for as much for $1,280 on Stubhub about an hour before the 7:30 p.m. tipoff. The fans loved him, and he blew them kisses after the No. 3 was raised to show how much he loved them back. "I am Philly," Iverson said. "Its always going to be that way." Iversons return injected a rare dose of excitement into a franchise playing some of the worst basketball in the league. The Sixers, in full-blown rebuilding mode, had lost 12 straight entering Saturdays game. The losing didnt matter much Saturday, just the memories. The Sixers wore special "Iverson Forever" patches on their jerseys and Iversons 3 on their pregame warmup shirts. "Its a great example of how this city responds to somebody that they clearly think the world of and brought such exciting times to the city of Philadelphia," Sixers coach Brett Brown said. The Sixers retirement gift was a boat named in honour of his nickname, "The Answer." "It feels good," Iverson said after the ceremony, "but some part of my heart hurts because I know its over." Iverson joined Cheeks, Barkley, Wilt Chamberlain and Julius Erving among the eight retired numbers in franchise history. Erving attended the ceremony. Moses Malone, Dikembe Mutombo, Theo Ratliff, Gary Payton and former team president Pat Croce also were at the celebration. Former coach Larry Brown, who both clashed with and loved Iverson over their tenure, sent a videotaped message. "I just want to tell you, and I say this fondly: God put me there to coach you," Brown said. Iverson said Brown was the player who moulded him into one of the NBAs best. "I always had raw talent," he said. "I needed Larry Brown to polish it up." Iverson was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1996 draft and spent his first 10 seasons in Philadelphia. He also played for Denver, Detroit, and Memphis before returning to Philadelphia for a 25-game stint in 2009-10. Iverson, who mashed hip-hop culture and hoops like no player before him, was perhaps at his peak in his fifth NBA season. The 165-pound guard averaged 31.1 points, was the MVP of the All-Star game and propped an entire franchise on his 6-foot frame all the way to the finals. Led by Brown, the Sixers needed Game 7 wins in consecutive series for the right to play the Lakers. Shaquille ONeal, Kobe Bryant and the Lakers swept their way through the post-season before Game 1 in Los Angeles. Iverson had 48 points in 52 minutes of an overtime victory. The Sixers didnt have enough to go the distance and the Lakers won the next four games. Hes 21st on the NBAs career scoring list with 24,368 points over 914 career games. Iverson, drafted out of Georgetown, scored 30-plus points 345 times and was an 11-time All-Star. His No. 3 jersey was a bestseller around the globe, the headband wrapped snugly around his cornrows, and the tattoos were as much a part of his image as the way he ricochets around the court. Play every game like it was his last was more than a catchphrase, it was a lifestyle. "Who could not be an Allen Iverson fan?" said Thaddeus Young, the lone current Sixers player who played with Iverson. "It got no bigger than him in Philadelphia." NBA Commissioner Adam Silver was at the game for AIs night. "Allen was a special player," Silver said before the game. "The great things he did for the league far outweigh the occasional headache. I always thought even at the time of Allen Iversons prominence in the league, he was representative of his generation." Jrue Holiday Pelicans Jersey . Trailing 5-4 in the third set, the 12th-ranked Isner fought off two match points and evened it at 5-5 with consecutive aces. The former University of Georgia star had his only service break of the match to go up 6-5 before firing the last four of his 30 aces to close out Ginepri, an Atlanta resident ranked 281st. Jrue Holiday Jersey .com) - The NBA will be on display overseas Thursday with the New York Knicks taking on the Milwaukee Bucks at O2 Arena in London. http://www.shoppelicansonline.com/Authen...elicans-Jersey/. Coming off a 6-0 drubbing at Chelsea on Saturday, Arsenal endured another demoralizing result after rallying for a 2-1 lead -- only to concede a fluke equalizer. Solomon Hill Pelicans Jersey . He even addressed his group of relievers Sunday morning. Dustin McGowan made those worries a nonfactor, at least for a day. McGowan pitched three-hit ball for seven innings, Colby Rasmus hit a grand slam and Melky Cabrera added a two-run homer as the Blue Jays beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-2. ETwaun Moore Jersey . - The Pittsburgh Pirates plan on keeping promising left fielder Starling Marte playing alongside National League MVP Andrew McCutchen for years to come.Syracuse, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - Jamison Crowder scored on a 52-yard punt return to break a tie and spark a big fourth quarter that lifted No. 22 Duke to a 27-10 win over Syracuse on Saturday. Anthony Boone passed for 161 yards with two touchdown throws to Issac Blakeney and the Blue Devils (8-1, 4-1 ACC) scored 17 unanswered points in the last 12:45 of the game to finish off their fourth straight win. They moved to 16-1 in their last 17 regular-season games. The Orange (3-7, 1-5) have lost three in a row. It was the first football game between the two traditional basketball powerhouses since 1939. Austin Wilson completed 11 of his 19 passes for 68 yards for Syracuse and Mitch Kimble went 6-of-13 for 37 yards after, with an 8-yard touchdown run that tied the score at 10-10 in the third quarter. But Crowder avoided one would-be tackler after catching a punt near the orange S at midfield, then slipped between two more before racing down the middle of the field for his go-ahead touchdown with 12:45 remaining. Rosss Martins 34-yard field goal followed a failed fourth-down attempt by the Orange and Breon Borders intercepted Wilson for the second time soon after, leading to Blakeneys 54-yard touchdown catch for a 27-10 Duke advantage with 7:13 left.dddddddddddd Earlier, the teams traded field goals on back-to-back drives in the first quarter -- with Martin and Syracuses Cole Murphy each drilling a 27-yard kick. Following four combined punts, Boones 22-yard touchdown pass to Blakeney gave the Blue Devils a 10-3 lead with 5:16 remaining in the second quarter. Game Notes Duke is 3-0 in the all-time series with two pre-war wins in 1938 (21-0 in Syracuse) and 1939 (33-6 in Durham). The basketball teams are tied 3-3 in the all-time series, splitting two games last season (Syracuse joined the ACC in 2013) ... Duke played its last road game. The Blue Devils will host their last three games, starting next week against Virginia Tech ... After a bye week, Syracuse plays at Pitt on Nov. 22. 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