There's not much that sets Aaron McKie apart as a basketball player. As a point guard, he's not really quick. At 6'5", 210 pounds he doesn't appear to be particularly strong. But to the Sixers, his worth to the team is immense.

"Take away Allen Iverson," says teammate Eric Snow, "and he's the best player on this team."

Take away what Aaron McKie did Sunday, and the Sixers are hopeless in this series. Starting his first game of the playoffs in place of the ineffective Snow, the NBA's sixth man of the year had 18 points, five rebounds and five assists -- all while chasing Vince Carter for 45 minutes in the Sixers' 84-79 win that evened the series at 2-2.

Philly's back in this series because Iverson finally got some help (Dikembe Mutombo had 12 points and 17 rebounds, and Snow hit a big jumper late in the fourth quarter). But Iverson did deliver the game's biggest shot, a long three-pointer over Carter with more than two minutes left -- right after the Raptors, who trailed most of the game, tied the game at 78 on a Chris Childs three-pointer with 2:46 left.

"It always starts with the little kid," Sixers coach Larry Brown said of Iverson's impact on the game. "He may not always play perfectly, but his heart is huge."

And so is Iverson's will to win, which is why he called a team meeting after Friday's 24-point loss when Carter scored 50 for the Raptors.

"I told them we're in the playoffs, and we've got to play like the top seed," Iverson said of his discussion. "There were a lot of curse words ... I think they responded well."

Yet players like McKie don't need inspirational speeches. Quiet and reserved, McKie doesn't seek the spotlight. In fact, the 1994 first round pick of the Blazers has always been a professional, even as he bounced from the Blazers to the Pistons to his hometown Sixers.

Starting the season as a reserve, McKie entered the starting lineup when Snow was injured and started 33 games. His had career highs in scoring (11.6 ppg), minutes (31.5 mpg), assists (5.0) and rebounds (4.1). Yes, Iverson was the leader, but McKie was the glue that kept the Sixers together through a season of injuries and trades. As well as he played on offense (he torched the smaller Childs in the third quarter), he played tremendous defense on Carter, taking away Vince's outside shot by playing him tight on the perimeter, forcing Carter in the lane where Mutombo disrupted his shots.

"We just have to take pride in how we play," said McKie, who was also embarrassed by Friday's loss. "We play an ugly game, and we enjoy playing that way. That's how we win games."

It took four games, but Iverson's supporting cast finally stepped forward. And they did it at an opportune time, as the Sixers were on the verge of going down 3-1 in the series. Now this Eastern Conference semifinal has been condensed to the best of three games, and the Sixers once again have the homecourt edge. Can that supporting cast -- now down a member with George Lynch out with a broken foot -- keep it up behind Iverson?

"They taught me a lot, by the way they responded," Iverson said. "Nobody told us winning a championship was going to be easy. It's not easy winning a playoff game at all, and we just have to keep playing our style and keep on going."

Jerry Bembry is covering the NBA playoffs for ESPN The Magazine. E-mail him at jerry.bembry@espnmag.com.