| 04 November 2010
Here’s what you have to remember about games played early in the season: No win is as sweet as it seems and no loss is as sour either. Case in point: A feel good win on the back of back-to-back games in Houston and a close fought loss to the Dallas Mavericks at home. The Nuggets will move on. So should we. Not to mention… there is a lot of good going on right now while this team is intact.
In Houston, it was a balanced attack that fruited the win for Denver. Al Harrington looked great in 30 minutes off the bench scoring a game-high tying 28 points, including 5-8 from the land of plenty, and snaring ten rebounds. In cahoots with Melo’s 24 points, four rebounds, four assists, and pair of blocks and Chauncey Billups’ scoring 13 points and handing out three assists the Nuggets showcased their version of a big three that more than countered Houston’s top three performers. Louis Scola finished with 28 points and ten boards and Kevin Martin with 21 points and four assists for the Rockets.
The Nuggets had a well-rounded game defensively as well. Collectively, they forced 19 Rocket turnovers and capitalized 20 points off said miscues and for the third straight time this season have forced more turnovers and scored more points off turnovers than their opponent. All five starters and seven out of the nine players that George Karl turned to in Houston recorded a steal and every Nugget secured at least one rebound. Also of note, Denver was a combined 29-33 from the free-throw line.
And that’s how you win on the road. You band together. You do the dirty work. You emerge victorious.
The Nuggets then had three days off to regroup and prepare for the Dallas Mavericks to visit Pepsi Center for the first time in this young season and for the most part they did a great job banding together… for the first half. The ball moved freely, the assists were piling up, and the Denver defense had once again forced more turnovers than their opponent. The Nuggets built a ten-point lead midway through the second quarter, 41-31, and without Nene available seemingly struck gold with forward Gary Forbes who scored twelve of his eventual 14 points in the first half. Forbes also played stints of tremendous defense which included a take away from Dirk Nowitzki that sparked a successful fast break and a blocked shot.
The only problem was the dirty work stopped getting done as the second half neared end and the Nuggets lost track of the perennial sixth-man of the year candidate, Jason Terry, in the third quarter. To the Mavericks’ credit, their zone completely disrupted Denver’s ability to score points off made baskets.
Terry caught fire for 16 (four three’s) of his 20 points in the third quarter as the Mavericks ripped off 34 in the period. Add in the continued effectiveness of the Dallas zone as the Nuggets had no inside presence without Nene, Denver turning over the ball nine times in the second half and forcing just five more turnovers, and Dirk Nowitzki scoring a season-high 35 points and grabbing a dozen rebounds summed the Nuggets just falling ever so short.
Yet still, Denver had their chance late in this game, but the final straw broke when after forcing a 24-second shot clock violation Carmelo Anthony’s 14th game winner rattled in and out as time expired. Carmelo finished as Denver’s leading scorer and rebounder with 25 points and a season-high 15 rebounds. Arron Afflalo continues to impress me with his decision making process and ability to knock down shots. Afflalo kicked in 17 points (3-4 from three) and five rebounds. Al Harrington and Chauncey Billups each scored 16 points and Ty Lawson handed out a team-high nine assists.
Up next for the Nuggets is a look at Blake Griffin and the Clippers at Pepsi on Friday night. Denver is now 1-1 at home.
| < Prev |
|---|
