Nuggets bounce back after bowing to Kings
Nets no match for dominance from Denver
The Nuggets were presented this week with a chance to make a statement, or at least create some separation, in the race for the final playoff berth in the NBA’s Western Conference.
First, a Thursday night road game against a Sacramento Kings team that had just been shaken to its foundation by the trade of franchise cornerstone DeMarcus Cousins and was incorporating three new players.
Strike one. The Nuggets fell apart in a dismal second quarter and never recovered in a 116-100 loss, a perplexing stumble out of the all-star break.
“We laid an egg,” Nuggets guard Gary Harris said, summing up the loss to the Kings.
Its back suddenly against the ball, Denver didn’t miss Friday’s at-bats against a slow-swaying piñata that hung in the Pepsi Center in the form of the woeful Brooklyn Nets, who had lost 14 consecutive games.
The Nuggets (26-32) had little problem making it 15 in a row, riding three 20-point scorers to a 129-109 win in front of a crowd of 17,143 that included former Nuggets star Alex English.
Sitting courtside, English, an eight-time all-star and 1997 Hall of Fame inductee, said he has enjoyed watching the Nuggets this season, likening the team’s highscoring offense to the free-flowing system he helped steer under then-coach Doug Moe.
The Nuggets gave the franchise’s all-time leading scorer the entertainment he coveted. Denver eclipsed the 100-point mark when Jamal Murray nailed a 3-pointer with 6.2 seconds left in the third quarter to put the Nuggets up 101-74.
“It was a good bounce-back win after a very disappointing loss in Sacramento,” said Nuggets coach Michael Malone.
Harris contributed a careerhigh 25 points, Wilson Chandler scored 24 and Danilo Gallinari
had 20 points and eight rebounds to help the Nuggets snap a six-game losing streak to the Nets, a stretch that included two buzzer-beating defeats last season. The Nuggets shot 14-of-31 from the 3-point line.
Harris was an effective 9-of-15 from the field and hit 4-of-6 attempts from 3point range. It was the third consecutive game of at least 22 points for the thirdyear shooting guard.
“He’s been very consistent,” Malone said. “He’s shooting the ball with confidence. What I also like about him is he doesn’t just settle for the jump shot. He attacks. He’s a downhill driver. He’s not just a one-dimensional player.”
The Nuggets were forced to adjust on the fly when starting center Nikola Jokic picked up his second foul less than three minutes into the first quarter.
Jokic picked up an unnecessary early foul in the opening moments to stifle a fast break.
“He can’t do that,” Malone said. “He’s too important.”
Nets center Brook Lopez alertly attacked Jokic several possessions later and drew the second foul. Denver’s second-year center, who has been out of sync in the last three games, was limited to only 14 minutes by the foul trouble and finished with four points, five rebounds and seven assists.
New acquisition Mason Plumlee picked up the slack. The 6-foot-11 rimrunning big man injected quick energy and created plays on the glass. Plumlee had eight rebounds in the first half alone and flirted with a triple-double. His final line: 12 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists against the team that drafted him in 2013.
“It’s always good to beat Brooklyn,” Plumlee said. “It was a good win to come in on a back to back and play with that kind of energy. I thought guys really played together.”
Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried left the game in the third quarter with back spasms and did not return.