Suns-Nuggets Preview

By MATT BEARDMORE
Posted Apr 05 2012 3:44PM

The Denver Nuggets know they caught a break when Phoenix Suns coach Alvin Gentry decided to rest Steve Nash the last time these teams played. They're unlikely to be as fortunate this time with the Suns making a strong playoff push.

Playing its first home game in more than two weeks, Denver goes for a fifth consecutive victory in this series Friday night while surging Phoenix tries to move back into playoff position.

The Nuggets ended a five-game home losing streak with a 109-92 win over the Suns on Feb. 14 - a victory that came with the star point guard out of the lineup.

"Phoenix kind of gave us a some slack by not playing Nash," coach George Karl said after the Nuggets won for the eighth time in nine home games versus Phoenix (28-26).

Back from a 4-3 trip that ended with a 94-92 loss to conference-worst New Orleans on Wednesday, the Nuggets (29-25) can expect to see plenty of Nash on Friday.

Nash scored just 13 points in a 107-105 victory at Utah on Wednesday but hit two baskets in the final 14 seconds, including a lean-in jumper from the foul line with 1.7 seconds left.

He was also one assist shy of reaching double digits for a fourth consecutive game.

"You get the ball in his hands and you know he is going to get something good for his team," Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin said. "... He is a great player and he made great plays for them down the stretch."

The Suns, winners of three straight and 16 of 23, need more production from Nash in their final 12 games as they try to avoid missing the postseason for the third time in four seasons.

With a victory over Denver and a Rockets loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday, Phoenix would climb into a three-way tie for eighth place in the West.

"We are gaining confidence and we believe that we can keep winning," said Nash, among the league leaders with 11.2 assists per game.

The Nuggets like their chances of securing a ninth consecutive playoff berth, but their inconsistency could prevent that from happening. Denver defeated Eastern Conference-best Chicago and Orlando - which was without Dwight Howard - during its just-completed trip, but also lost to Toronto and the Hornets.

The Nuggets' playoff hopes could also hinge on their play at home, as they've alternated losses and wins in their last eight games there.

The Suns will complete their three-game trip by trying to win for the fifth time in six road games.

Nash, averaging 17.6 points and 11.3 assists in his last eight games in Denver, may see plenty of Nuggets point guard Ty Lawson with backup Andre Miller's status questionable. Miller was ejected Wednesday for a flagrant-2 foul on New Orleans' Carl Landry.

Veteran guard Michael Redd has led the Suns reserves with 14.0 points per game during the winning streak. He scored 20 on Feb. 14 while starting in place of Grant Hill, who was also given the night off to rest.

Hill has missed the last five games with a torn right meniscus.

Afflalo's 30 lifts Nuggets past Suns, 105-99

Posted Apr 07 2012 1:02AM

DENVER (AP) Andre Miller showed his young Denver teammates what it takes to win in April. He hopes the lesson takes the Nuggets deep into the playoffs.

Miller scored 13 of his 15 in the fourth quarter, Arron Afflalo led the way with 30 points and the Nuggets scored the final nine points to beat the Phoenix Suns 105-99 on Friday night.

Al Harrington had 23 points to help the Nuggets take sole possession of seventh place in the Western Conference, a half-game ahead of idle Houston and 1 1/2 in front of Utah. The Suns dropped to 10th place, a half-game behind the Jazz.

"It's big," Miller said. "I don't know if the young guys know about positioning for the playoffs, but you want to position yourselves to get a decent matchup in the first round. At this point we can't even worry about that, it's so tight. We've just got to figure out how to stay in the race."

Friday's win also gave Denver the tiebreaker against the Suns, as the Nuggets have won the teams' first two meetings - including a 109-92 victory on Feb. 14. They play again April 24 in Phoenix.

Miller wants that game to mean more than clinching a trip to the playoffs. In his 13th season he wants to play meaningful games long after the regular season ends.

"I'd like to be out there in May," he said. "I haven't been out of the first round so we've got to keep pushing and hopefully we can get past that."

Miller looks at the standings constantly to what more needs to be done to improve Denver's lot so a deep playoff run is realistic. Friday, with the seventh-youngest roster in the league, the 36-year-old guard decided he needed to take control in the fourth quarter.

Down 97-92, he grabbed a defensive rebound and when he got to midcourt threw a pass to Kenneth Faried for an alley-oop dunk that got Denver rolling. Miller then scored on two layups and hit two free throws to give the Nuggets a 100-99 lead.

"The pass he threw to Kenneth from halfcourt might be one of the best passes I've ever seen," Nuggets coach George Karl said. "He has this passion to will games. There are so many plays from the seven-minute mark, Andre's scoring and passing, rebounding, he had a pretty special night. I'd give this one to Andre."

After Phoenix didn't score, Miller drove the lane and found Afflalo in the corner and Afflalo made his fifth 3-pointer of the game to give Denver a four-point lead with 48 seconds left.

"It was amazing to see a guy like him just step up and put this team on his back," Faried said.

Denver outscored the Suns 13-2 to finish the game.

"The score was 97-92 and we come up with two points the rest of the way," Suns coach Alvin Gentry said. "We gave Andre (Miller) two easy drives to the basket. You have to do a better job of execution. That's what you have to do down the stretch."

Shannon Brown scored 18 points and Steve Nash had 14 points and 11 assists for the Suns, who had their three-game win streak snapped.

Nash didn't play in the previous matchup, and his presence Friday made this game more competitive. He hit a 3-pointer to put the Suns ahead five with 5:08 left, but Denver rallied to win again.

"It was a bad loss for us," Nash said. "We had a bad close to the game and didn't make plays down the stretch."

The Suns surged in the last month to get in the thick of the playoff hunt. They have won 11 of 17 after a slow start and were trying to tie Denver for the eighth and final playoff spot in the West.

"We have no margin of error," Gentry said. "We have zero margin of error."

The Nuggets went on a 16-6 run to start the second half and take a 68-58 lead. The Suns rallied to go ahead 75-73 on two free throws by Nash. Harrington scored the last five points of the period to give Denver a 78-75 lead, and his two 3s early in the fourth pushed the lead to 86-79.

Phoenix answered with a 13-1 run to lead 92-87 midway through the fourth.

With Denver trailing 35-29 early in the second quarter, Harrington scored 10 of his 12 first-half points and Afflalo hit a 3 to key an 18-4 run to give the Nuggets an eight-point lead.

The Suns came right back with an 11-1 run to take a 50-48 lead late in the half. Jordan Hamilton's jumper tied the score at 52-all at halftime.

NOTES: The Nuggets tied a franchise low with five turnovers. ... Hamilton became the 16th player to start for the Nuggets this season. ... Nuggets F Wilson Chandler (groin) missed his third straight game. He had an MRI earlier Friday to determine the severity of the injury. ... Suns G Michael Redd scored 13 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter.

Notebook: Nuggets 105, Suns 99

Posted Saturday April 7, 2012 1:21AM

By Michael Kelly, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Andre Miller scored 13 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter and spearheaded a late rally to lift the Denver Nuggets over the Phoenix Suns 105-99 on Friday night.

Arron Afflalo scored 30 points and Al Harrington had 23 for the Nuggets, who kept pace with Houston in the Western Conference standings. The Rockets and Nuggets are tied for seventh.

Shannon Brown scored 18 points and Steve Nash had 14 points and 11 assists for the Suns, who had their three-game winning streak snapped. Phoenix fell to 10th in the West, 1½ games behind Utah.

QUOTABLE: "It was amazing to see a guy like him just step up and put this team on his back."
-- Denver rookie Kenneth Faried, on Miller.

THE STAT: The Nuggets tied a franchise low with five turnovers while forcing 16. Denver outscored the Suns 26-4 in points off turnovers.

TURNING POINT: Miller's fourth quarter. He had two points entering the period and took over the game late. He started with a halfcourt alley-oop to Faried, hit two layups and two free throws and then found Afflalo in the corner for a 3-pointer that put the Nuggets ahead 103-99.

QUOTABLE II: "The pass he threw to Kenneth from halfcourt might be one of the best passes I've ever seen. He has this passion to will games. Andre's scoring and passing, rebounding, he had a pretty special night. I'd give this one to Andre."
-- Nuggets coach George Karl.

HOT: Afflalo missed his first four shots of the game and then caught fire. At one point he hit seven straight shots and scored 25 of his 30 points in the second and third quarters combined.

NOT: Nuggets center Timofey Mozgov didn't play for the fourth straight game. The team's starter for most of the year -- when healthy -- Mozgov has lost minutes to JaVale McGee, who the Nuggets are giving a long look in trying to decide if he fits into their future plans.

INSIDE THE ARENA: Colorado Avalanche players Paul Stastny and David Jones sat courtside a night after they were eliminated from the playoffs in the same arena.

GOOD MOVE: The Nuggets were struggling against the Suns smaller lineup in the fourth quarter, so Karl matched the strategy by subbing in the 6-foot-9 Harrington for the 7-foot McGee. The move paid off down the stretch.

QUOTABLE III: "We still had a chance to win. Even though we had turnovers we were up five with a couple of minutes left. We have to be better at controlling the game."
-- Steve Nash.

ROOKIE WATCH: Jordan Hamilton got the start for the injured Wilson Chandler, becoming the 16th player to be in the starting lineup for Denver. He responded with a strong start, scoring five quick points and grabbing three rebounds. He finished with 11 points and five rebounds.

NOTABLE: The Nuggets won despite shooting just 40 percent and getting outrebounded 54-41. ... Suns reserve guard Michael Redd scored 13 of his 15 points in the fourth quarter. ... Denver were 11-for-27 from 3-point range. They are now 10-0 when hitting 10 or more 3 pointers.

UP NEXT: For the Suns, Saturday vs. L.A. Lakers, Monday @ Minnesota, Wednesday @ Memphis. For the Nuggets, Saturday @ Golden State, Monday vs. Golden State, Wednesday vs. Minnesota.

• Suns: --
• Nuggets: Chandler, Fernandez

• Suns: --
• Nuggets: --

• Lead Changes: 8
• Times Tied: 10

• Arena: Pepsi Center, Denver, CO
• Officials: #14 Ed Malloy, #28 Tommy Nunez Jr., #47 Bennie Adams
• Attendance: 19155
• Duration: 2:18