Warriors-Nuggets Preview

By ALAN FERGUSON
Posted Jan 13 2013 12:17AM

The Denver Nuggets are on the verge of their longest win streak of the season but that run has come mainly against teams with lackluster records.

That will change if the Nuggets can get past the visiting Golden State Warriors on Sunday night, and they might finally have Wilson Chandler available to help them out.

After splitting eight games, Denver has gotten back on track by averaging 107.0 points in its four consecutive wins but only one of those victories has come over a team that currently owns a winning record - Utah at 20-19. The Nuggets (22-16) needed a late surge to beat their third consecutive sub-.500 opponent Friday.

Ty Lawson hit a tiebreaking layup with 1:48 to go in a 98-91 victory over Cleveland and Danilo Gallinari sank a key 3-pointer with 34.9 seconds left. Gallinari finished with 23 points and Kosta Koufos had a career-high 21.

"It was an important shot and it was important that we got this win at home," said Gallinari, who is averaging a team-best 21.0 points during the win streak.

The Nuggets also needed a late push to top Orlando 108-105 on Wednesday and required some late free throws to fend off the Los Angeles Lakers for a 112-105 victory last Sunday.

Denver might not have the luxury of waiting to pull away when it faces Golden State (23-12), which is off to its best start since 1991-92. The Warriors, though, had endured their second set of back-to-back losses before edging Portland 103-97 on Friday.

David Lee had 24 points, matching his total from the previous two games, while Stephen Curry scored 22 despite missing 15 of 22 shots.

"We've got another tough task ahead of us, but we're looking forward to it. In an ideal world, you continue to play and keep putting check marks in the win column," said coach Mark Jackson, who won 23 games in his inaugural season with Golden State.

The Warriors will likely have a difficult challenge in Denver, which is 13-2 at home. Curry was held to six points in a 102-91 defeat there Nov. 23, their 15th loss in 17 visits.

Andre Iguodala, meanwhile, had a season-high 29 in that game, but he also had a buzzer-beating 3-pointer overturned on video review in a 106-105 loss at Golden State on Nov. 29. Iguodala had 22 points in that defeat while Lee scored a season-best 31 for the Warriors on 13-of-15 shooting.

Golden State ended a three-game skid to Denver with that victory and would like to spoil Chandler's expected return during this matchup. The swingman hasn't played since Nov. 12 because of problems with his surgically repaired hip.

Chandler, who spent a portion of last season playing in China, averaged 12.5 points in 21 games with Denver in 2010-11 after being acquired from New York.

"I'm just getting my strength back, and I feel pretty strong," he told the team's website. "I think now it's just getting my wind back. I know (Sunday) I'll be a little winded. I just have to fight through it."

Gallinari has scored at least 20 points in each of the three games against Golden State and he had six of his 21 in the final 36 seconds of double overtime in a 107-101 road win Nov. 10.

In the next matchup, Gallinari will try to lead Denver to its first five-game win streak since a six-game run Jan. 17-27.

Nuggets rally past Warriors for 5th straight win

By DENNIS GEORGATOS
Posted Jan 14 2013 12:20AM

DENVER (AP) Wilson Chandler returned after a two-month absence due to hip problems with a strong effort on both sides of the ball for the Denver Nuggets.

Chandler scored 14 points in 21 minutes, tops among Denver's reserves, and had two steals to key a big fourth-quarter run as the Nuggets rallied past the Golden State Warriors 116-105 Sunday night for their season-high fifth straight win.

"I got a little winded but hopefully that's something I've just got to fight through," said Chandler, who was playing for the first time since early November after undergoing surgery last spring to repair a labral tear in his left hip. "It felt good to be back out there having fun. Not being healthy last year and this year has been frustrating so I was glad I was out there for that long and felt that good."

Chandler's return provides another option for the Nuggets on an already deep bench as Denver's reserves outscored Golden State's backups 48-17.

"It helps knowing that come playoff time, we have depth and guys who can step up, especially when somebody has a bad night," Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried said. "We don't have to rely on just one or two guys. We've got three, four, five guys who can come in and score or play defense and do the little things that help us win games."

Danilo Gallinari scored 21 points and Ty Lawson had 20 for the Nuggets.

Stephen Curry scored 29 points, including seven 3-pointers, to lead Golden State. David Lee added 23 points and 13 rebounds and Harrison Barnes had 21 points.

Down by eight going into the fourth quarter, Denver opened the period with a 19-2 flurry to go up 98-89. Andre Miller and Corey Brewer each scored six points, running the floor and scoring primarily on layups. Faried converted a three-point play when he muscled in a dunk and was fouled by Lee.

The Warriors opened the door to the Nuggets' comeback with some sloppy ball-handling, committing seven of their 18 turnovers in the fourth quarter and allowing Denver to get its transition game going.

"We didn't take care of the basketball at the start of the fourth quarter," Warriors coach Mark Jackson said. "We gave them life by being careless with the basketball. It is a team that feeds off that. They got going in transition and that hurt us."

Lee broke up the flurry with a dunk and Curry connected on successive 3s to pull the Warriors to 100-97 with 6:10 remaining.

Brewer, who finished with 13 points, and Gallinari hit 3s around a dunk by Gallinari to rebuild the Nuggets' lead to 108-97. Barnes' 3 with 4:00 left cut the Warriors' deficit to nine points but Faried shook loose for a breakaway dunk and the Warriors didn't threaten again.

"We got sloppy and we didn't get good possessions," Curry said. "Against a team like Denver, that fuels their offense. They got easy baskets and it deflated us a little bit. In the half-court, we stopped them all night and then we let them get into transition.

"It is tough to stop when they get going. They are a fast team and they go 10 deep and go up and down. We play a lot of minutes and we have to have good possessions on offense."

The Nuggets scored six straight points, including a short turnaround jumper by JaVale McGee to tie the score at 75-all with 3:23 left in the third quarter. Golden State, though, closed out the quarter with a 12-4 run.

Curry's bank shot and a dunk by Barnes started the surge that allowed the Warriors to take an 87-79 lead into the final period.

Curry hit five 3s in the first half, helping the Warriors take a 54-52 lead.

NOTES: Nuggets C Kosta Koufos scored the 1,000th point of his career when he made a hook shot with 6:32 remaining in the third quarter. ... Curry has scored 20 or more points 23 times this season. ... Lee finished four assists shy of a triple double. ... The Nuggets have outscored the opposition 151-102 in the fourth quarter during their five-game winning streak. ... Denver has won 23 consecutive games at home when scoring 110 or more points. ... Barnes' five 3s represented a career high.

Notebook: Nuggets 116, Warriors 105

Michael Kelly, for NBA.com
Posted Sun Jan 13, 2013 11:43 PM - Updated Sun Jan 13, 2013 11:43 PM

THE FACTS: Danilio Gallinari scored 21 points, Ty Lawson had 20 points and five assists and the Denver Nuggets opened the fourth quarter with an 18-2 run to beat the Golden State Warriors 116-105 on Sunday night.

The Nuggets have won five straight and improved to 14-2 at home.

Stephen Curry scored a game-high 29 points but just nine in the second half. David Lee had 23 points and 13 rebounds and Harrison Barnes scored a career-high 21 points for the Warriors, who have lost three of their last four.

Denver forward Wilson Chandler scored 14 points and had six rebounds and three steals in his first game back since Nov. 12.

QUOTABLE: "I feel like we're most focused in the fourth quarter. I don't know why. I feel like we take the first half for granted but we really go hard in the fourth."

-- Nuggets center JaVale McGee

THE STAT: The Warriors were scorching from the field through the first three quarters, hitting 56 percent of their shots. It dried up in the fourth when they shot just 35 percent and were outscored by 19 points.

TURNING POINT: The Nuggets turned up their defense at the start of the fourth quarter and it turned the game in their favor. They trailed 87-79 heading into the final period but scored 18 points in a span of 4:23 to take a 98-89 lead. The Warriors closed to within three midway through the period but a 3-pointer by Corey Brewer and a putback dunk by Gallinari put the game away.

QUOTABLE II: "We did everything right. We had an (eight-point) lead going into the fourth. That's where we want to be on the road."

-- Curry

HOT: Lee keeps producing for the Warriors. He had his third straight double-double and leads the NBA in games of 20 points and 10 rebounds. He has done it 16 times, three better than Miami's LeBron James.

NOT: Jarrett Jack had a rough stretch in the fourth quarter when the Nuggets took control. The guard had two turnovers and missed two shots and committed a foul during Denver's 15-0 run. Klay Thompson and Jack combined for 10 turnovers and the Warriors had seven of their 18 miscues in the fourth quarter.

QUOTABLE III: "We didn't take care of the basketball at the start of the fourth quarter. We gave them life by being careless with the basketball. This is a team that feeds off of that. They got it going in transition and they hurt us. Two of our backcourt guys have 10 turnovers together. You're not going to survive that."

-- Warriors coach Mark Jackson

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Curry can fill up a box score in a hurry. He was held to two points for most of the second half and then hit two straight 3-pointers to pull his team within three late. He also finished with seven assists.

GOOD MOVE: The Nuggets used a full-court press early in the fourth quarter that bothered Golden State. The Warriors had three turnovers and four missed shots during Denver's decisive run. Andre Miller's steal and layup sparked the Nuggets.

ROOKIE WATCH: Barnes got hot in the third quarter when Curry wasn't shooting. The rookie hit three 3-pointers and scored 11 points in the period.

NOTABLE: Kosta Koufos scored his 1,000th point on a hook shot midway through the third quarter. ... Warriors center Andris Biedrins missed his second straight game with a strained right groin. ... The Nuggets tied a season high with 26 points off turnovers. ... Andre Iguodala tied a season-high with five steals.

UP NEXT: For the Warriors, Wednesday vs. Miami, Friday @ San Antonio, Saturday @ New Orleans. For the Nuggets, Tuesday vs. Portland, Wednesday @ Oklahoma City, Friday vs. Washington.

• Warriors: Bogut, Rush
• Nuggets: Miller, Stone

• Warriors: --
• Nuggets: --

• Lead Changes: 14
• Times Tied: 11

• Arena: Pepsi Center, Denver, CO
• Officials: #14 Ed Malloy, #40 Leon Wood, #54 Nick Buchert
• Attendance: 15861
• Duration: 2:01