Philadelphia ? Allen Iverson had his best all-around season for Philadelphia. Jamal Mashburn did the same for New Orleans.

The Sixers open their best-of-seven Eastern Conference series against the Hornets tonight, and one of the key questions is which team has the tougher challenge on defense?

“Their team trying to stop me, simple as that,” Iverson said. “Because my energy level is going to be so high, just getting back to the playoffs, having another opportunity to win a championship.

“I’m just going to bring everything I got, not just trying to score, but trying to create for my teammates as well. Once this series starts, I’m going to demand a lot of double- and triple-teams, and hopefully that’ll get open shots for my guys.”

A three-time scoring champion and former MVP, Iverson improved many aspects of his game this season. He averaged 27.6 points, 5.5 assists, 4.2 rebounds and played in all 82 games for the first time in his seven-year career.

Mashburn also had one of his best years, averaging 21.6 points, 6.1 rebounds and a career-high 5.6 assists. He played in his first All-Star game and also didn’t miss a game for the first time in his 10 seasons.

“Allen is one of the top two or three scorers in the league,” teammate Keith Van Horn said. “He’s one of the toughest matchups in the league.”

So is Mashburn, a 6-foot-8 forward with quickness and a sharp jumper. The Sixers will start Kenny Thomas against Mashburn, and also plan to use Van Horn and reserves Monty Williams and Greg Buckner to defend him.

“He’s a guy you don’t want to give a steady diet of any one player,” Van Horn said. “You want to give him different looks, different feels. He’s a great rhythm player. When he gets into a rhythm, he’s tough to stop.”

Iverson and Mashburn have solid supporting players around them.

Van Horn, coming off a foot injury that sidelined him six of the last seven games, gives the Sixers another viable scoring option. He averaged 15.9 points. Eric Snow had his best season, averaging 12.9.

Mashburn has help from the backcourt tandem of Baron Davis and David Wesley. Davis averaged 17.1 points; Wesley averaged 16.7.