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." Cheap Custom Shirts . Huntington doesnt want to help run the club unless Hurdle is in the dugout. The combination thats returned the franchise to respectability will remain intact for years to come. Custom Shirts Outlet . The Marlies surrendered two power-play goals and failed to score on six man-advantage opportunities en route to a 4-1 defeat in American Hockey League action on Saturday. http://www.shirtscustom.us/ . -- Albert Pujols is thrilled to have a reason to forget about his first two disappointing seasons with the Los Angeles Angels. Best Custom Shirts . While he was away, it was the division-rival Baltimore Orioles conducting a little business of their own, scooping up Ubaldo Jimenez on Monday evening to a reported four-year, $50-million contract. Wholesale Custom Shirts .Johnny there, who knew he had that speed? teammate Tommy Wingels said.Scott and Matt Irwin were unlikely goal-scorers Tuesday night as the previously stingy San Jose Sharks finally sprung a leak or two, blowing a pair of three-goal leads before coming away with a 6-5 shootout victory over the Washington Capitals.LONDON - Just three months into the season, it is hard to see how Chelsea can be stopped in its remorseless charge to the English Premier League title.For many, the biggest question now is whether it can go through the season unbeaten.Chelsea got past another major obstacle on its way to the league title by winning 2-1 at Liverpool on Saturday. Defending champion Manchester City, probably Chelseas biggest rival, is eight points behind in third after 11 games following a 2-2 draw at Queens Park Rangers.Bayern Munich won to also open up a big lead in Germany while Real Madrid stayed at the top of the Spanish league with a rout of Rayo Vallecano, and Luis Suarez led Barcelona to victory over Almeria with two assists.Heres a look at the action from the top European leagues:___ENGLANDChelsea came from behind to beat Liverpool at Anfield in the Premier League, with Diego Costa scoring the winner in the 67th minute.Emre Can put Liverpool ahead in the ninth minute with a long-range strike that deflected off Gary Cahill, before Cahill reacted quickest in a goalmouth scramble to equalize with a 14th-minute goal that needed confirming through goal-line technology.Asked if his team could go through the season unbeaten, Mourinho said it would be the impossible job. Yet Chelsea has played four of its hardest away matches this season — the two Manchester clubs, Liverpool and Everton — and is even harder to beat at home.Southampton stayed four points behind in second place thanks to Shane Longs double in a 2-0 win over Leicester but Man City dropped two more points by drawing at QPR, with Sergio Aguero scoring two equalizers to take his league-high haul to 12 goals.Manchester United won 1-0 against Crystal Palace thanks to a goal from Juan Mata. Burnley won for first time this season, 1-0 against Hull, and West Ham drew 0-0 with Aston Villa.___SPAINSuarez set up two late goals to help give Barcelona a 2-1 comeback victory at Almeria in the Spanish league.With Barcelona trailing 1-0 and facing a third straight loss in the competition, Suarez came on at halftime and orchestrated the visitors fightback in his fourth appearance for his new team since completing a four-month biting ban.The Uruguay forward used a burst of speed to shed his marker before crossing for fellow substitute Neymar to equalize in the 73rd minute. He then picked out Jordi Alba to grab the winner in the 82nd.Almeria forward Bifouma Thievy had put the hosts ahead in the 22nd on a counterattack after Lionel Messi lost the ball.Barcelona went top of the table for a couple of hours, and then provisionally went into second place after Real Madrid routed Rayo Vallecano 5-1 to retake first place in La Liiga.dddddddddddd Cristiano Ronaldo polished off the lopsided win with his league-leading 18th goal and 23rd in all competitions this season.Valencia and Atletico Madrid can also overtake Barcelona with wins on Sunday.___GERMANYThomas Mueller scored a hat trick as Bayern Munich won 4-0 at Eintracht Frankfurt to increase its overnight lead in the Bundesliga to seven points on Saturday.Franck Ribery set up Muellers first two, crossing for the World Cup winner to open the scoring in the 22nd minute and then again to finish a counterattack in the 64th. Mueller completed his hat trick three minutes later and Xherdan Shaqiri completed the scoring in the 86th.Bayern is unbeaten, with eight wins from 11 games, 27 goals scored and just three conceded.The defending champions closest rivals, Wolfsburg and Borussia Moenchengladbach, were both playing their 11th-round games on Sunday.Elsewhere Saturday, Schalke disappointed in a 2-0 defeat at Freiburg, Bayer Leverkusen was held to a frustrating 0-0 draw by visiting Mainz, Augsburg beat promoted Paderborn 3-0 and Cologne won 4-3 at Hoffenheim. Werder Bremen defeated fellow struggler Stuttgart 2-0.___ITALYAC Milans winless streak stretched to four matches following a 2-2 draw at third-place Sampdoria in Serie A on Saturday, although the Rossoneri could at least celebrate promising young forward Stephan El Shaarawy breaking his scoring drought.El Shaarawy put Milan ahead in the 10th minute with his first goal in two seasons. Stefano Okaka scored for Sampdoria just before halftime and Brazilian forward Eder put the hosts ahead in the 51st. Jeremy Menez equalized for Milan with a penalty in the 65th.Earlier, Sassuolo stretched its unbeaten streak to five matches by drawing 0-0 with visiting Atalanta in a matchup of two squads in the lower half of the table.___FRANCEBordeaux beat struggling Lens 2-1 to go level on points with second-place Paris Saint-Germain in the French league on Saturday.Bordeaux midfielder Wahbi Khazri finished off a counterattack to open the scoring in the 24th minute. Mali striker Cheick Diabate doubled the lead by dribbling past goalkeeper Valentin Belon in the 41st for his fifth league goal this season.After scoring, Diabate rushed toward the touchline to hug Bordeaux coach Willy Sagnol, who could not hold back tears later on the bench. Sagnol apologized Thursday for making disparaging comments about African players this week.Before kickoff, Sagnol shook hands with Lens coach Antoine Kombouare, who was born in New Caledonia and said Thursday he felt humiliated and hurt when he heard those comments.Lens striker Yoann Touzghar scored a consolation goal with a penalty in the 74th. ' ' '