Cavaliers-Nuggets Preview

By MATT BEARDMORE
Posted Jan 10 2013 4:23PM

Denver Nuggets coach George Karl didn't think his team was aggressive enough in the last game, but his players keep producing in the paint and working the boards.

To prevent that from happening to them, the Cleveland Cavaliers are likely going to need their young big men to step up with center Anderson Varejao still sidelined.

Denver will try to match a season high with a fourth straight victory Friday night when the Cavs open a five-game western swing.

Despite the Nuggets (21-16) rallying from nine down in the fourth quarter of Wednesday's 108-105 victory over Orlando, Karl didn't hide his displeasure about his team being called for an NBA season-low seven fouls.

"I think seven is a little insulting, embarrassing to me," said Karl, whose squad averages 20.3 fouls. "Because I think our team should be more aggressive than that. You should have at least twice that many fouls to find out what you can get away with."

The Nuggets, though, have been averaging plenty of points in the paint (60.7), rebounds (46.7) and second-chance points (19.3) during their winning streak. Kenneth Faried has a team-high 35 boards during that stretch after grabbing 19 on Wednesday. He also scored nine of his 19 points in the fourth quarter when Denver outscored the Magic 38-28.

"We were all locked in and had to do what we had to do," Faried said after the Nuggets improved to 12-2 at home. "We were able to escape with a win."

It could be tough for the Cavaliers (9-28) to leave Denver with a win - and snap a five-game skid at Western Conference opponents - as they will be without Varejao, the NBA leader with 14.4 rebounds per game, for at least another six to eight weeks due to a right knee injury.

"Andy's production, his effort, his whole morale around the team will be missed," leading scorer Kyrie Irving said after finishing with 33 points in Wednesday's 99-83 win over Atlanta, Cleveland's most lopsided victory of the season. "We all have to step up."

Second-year forward Tristan Thompson has done just, averaging 13.1 points and 12.5 rebounds in 11 games since Varejao last played.

Tyler Zeller will continue to start in Varejao's place, and coach Byron Scott can only hope the rookie center can keep producing like he did against the Hawks as he scored 11 to go with a season-best 12 boards.

Thompson finished with 11 points and 14 rebounds.

"I don't know if we need (both to get double-doubles) every single night, but somewhere near there would be nice," Scott said.

So would more hot shooting nights from Irving, who has scored 30 or more in three of four games after hitting a season-best 73.3 percent (11 of 15) from the field Wednesday.

In the lone meeting between these teams last season, Irving scored 10 of his 18 points in the final 2:36 of a 100-99 road win March 7 that ended the Cavs' four-game skid in this series.

Point guards Ty Lawson and Andre Miller could help Denver match its best run since Nov. 19-25 as they've combined for 70 points and 32 assists in the last two games.

Gallinari scores 23, leads Nuggets past Cavs 98-91

By DENNIS GEORGATOS
Posted Jan 12 2013 1:04AM

DENVER (AP) Danilo Gallinari helped put a smooth finish on an otherwise uneven performance by the Denver Nuggets.

Gallinari scored 23 points, hitting a crucial 3-pointer in the waning seconds, and the Nuggets came back to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 98-91 Friday night for their fourth straight victory.

"We were down the whole game but we fought hard in the fourth quarter and made the right plays in the last couple of minutes to get the win," said Nuggets guard Ty Lawson, who drove the lane for a tiebreaking layup before dishing off to Gallinari for the clinching 3-pointer with 34.9 seconds remaining.

Kosta Koufos added a career-high 21 points and Kenneth Faried had 17 points and 11 rebounds to help the Nuggets overcome 22 turnovers, which matched a season high and led to 24 Cleveland points. They beat the Cavaliers for the 10th time in the last 13 meetings in Denver.

Kyrie Irving, playing despite an illness, scored 28 points to lead the Cavaliers. Dion Waiters had 18 points and Tristan Thompson 16.

"We're still young and dumb and don't understand what we have to do in the third quarter," Cleveland coach Byron Scott said after the Cavaliers, up 11 at halftime, were outscored 53-35 in the second half.

"It happens over and over," he added. "I'm tired of us giving games away and that's what we did tonight. They came out aggressive and we were on our heels the rest of the half. If we would have matched their aggressiveness, the way they came out, it could have been a different story."

A dunk by Thompson put the Cavaliers up 62-50 but the Nuggets got a 3-pointer and a three-point play from Gallinari during an 11-0 run, pulling to 62-61 with 5:43 left in the third quarter.

Cleveland, which got a 3-pointer from Luke Walton and a putback dunk from Tyler Zeller, fought back to take a 76-72 lead into the fourth.

After Irving's 3-pointer from beyond the top of the key gave Cleveland an 85-80 lead, the Nuggets put together a 7-0 burst, going in front 87-85 on a short hook by Koufos, who scored on an array of shots from in close.

"The guards did a heck of a job finding me in the key," Koufos said.

Said Scott: "We lost track of him. He worked his way underneath the defense a few times. They are a very good interior passing basketball team."

Lawson's driving layup with 1:48 left snapped an 89-all tie and after Cleveland couldn't convert on its next two possessions, Gallinari connected on his decisive 3-pointer.

"I'm always confident. I'm always ready to take those shots," Gallinari said. "I was wide open. Ty got the ball to me and it felt good leaving my hand. I thought it was going in as soon as I released it. It was an important shot and it was important that we got this win at home."

C.J. Miles, who missed Wednesday's win over Atlanta because of a back strain, hit a 3 for the final points of the second quarter to stretch the Cavaliers' halftime lead to 56-45. It was their biggest advantage at that point.

NOTES: Gallinari is averaging 21 points during the Nuggets' four-game winning streak. ... Walton scored eight points in his return to the Cavaliers after missing the previous two games to tend to personal matters. ... Faried has 29 career double-doubles, including 17 this season. ... Koufos' previous high was 18 points, which he accomplished twice, most recently against Golden State on April 11, 2011. ... Irving's 26 shots from the field represented a career high. He made 11 of them, including a pair of 3-pointers.

Notebook: Nuggets 98, Cavaliers 91

Michael Kelly, For NBA.com
Posted Sat Jan 12, 2013 1:29 AM - Updated Sat Jan 12, 2013 1:29 AM

THE FACTS: Danilo Gallinari had 23 points and hit a key 3-pointer in the final minute, Kosta Koufos scored a career-high 21 points and the Denver Nuggets overcame a game-high 28 points from Kyrie Irving to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 98-91 on Friday.

Kenneth Faried had 17 points and 11 rebounds and Andre Iguodala scored 13 points and added 11 rebounds for the Nuggets (22-16), who won their fourth straight.

Dion Waiters added 18 points and Tristan Thompson scored 16 points for the Cavaliers (9-28), who opened a five-game Western Conference road trip with a loss. Irving added seven assists and five steals after getting out of his sickbed to play 39 minutes.

QUOTABLE: "We were in the game and it started getting excited in the second half."

-- Kyrie Irving

THE STAT: The Nuggets tied a season high with 22 turnovers. It was the fourth time they've had 22 turnovers in a game, and they are 9-0 when committing 20 or more turnovers.

TURNING POINT: Ty Lawson came up big down the stretch despite a poor shooting night. He hit two driving layups in the final minutes, the last one when with 1:48 left that gave Denver the lead for good. He then fed Gallinari for a 3-pointer with 34 seconds remaining that made it 94-89.

QUOTABLE II: "Please don't tell my team that [we are] 9-0 when we have 20 turnovers. You're kidding me. I don't think I'm going to understand that. I don't think I'm going to read that book."

-- Nuggets coach George Karl

HOT: Irving came into the game averaging 27.8 points and 5.5 assists in his last four games. He did nothing to hurt the average Friday, although he did struggle from long range, going 2-for-9 on 3-pointers. He did attempt a career-high 26 shots.

NOT: Cleveland's Alonzo Gee had a game to forget. The forward was 1-for-7 from the field for two points, had five fouls and let an offensive rebound slip through his hands late in the game when the Cavaliers were trying to tie it up.

QUOTABLE III: "The second half, we didn't come out ready to play -- period. We had a chance to win a basketball game. We came out in what I call our 'cool mode.' What happens in this league, being cool will get your [butt] kicked. That's the way we came out and that's what we got."

-- Cleveland coach Byron Scott

GOOD MOVE: After Irving hit a 14-foot jumper over Lawson to give Cleveland a four-point lead midway through the fourth quarter, Karl put Iguodala back in the game. Like he did against Orlando on Wednesday, Iguodala shut down the opponent's best player, holding Irving to five points the rest of the way.

QUOTABLE IV: "It kind of gets me in the game late in the games when I'm attacking on defense and get my hands on [the] ball. Trying to be explosive and close games out on both ends."

-- Andre Iguodala on his defense and overall play in the fourth quarter

BAD MOVE: The Nuggets' big men. They missed four dunks, three by JaVale McGee. His last one was a missed putback that would have pulled Denver within two. Tyler Zeller had a putback dunk on Cleveland's next possession.

ROOKIE WATCH: Waiters continues a strong campaign with his 18 points, 14 of which came in the first half. He has scored in double figures in four of his last six games and is averaging 14.5 points a game in January.

NOTABLE: Cavaliers forward Luke Walton returned to the team after missing two games for personal reasons. ... Koufos set a career high with field goals (10) and attempts (17). His previous highs were eight and 11, respectively. ... Denver outrebounded Cleveland 56-35.

UP NEXT: For the Cavaliers, Sunday @ L.A. Lakers, Monday @ Sacramento, Wednesday @ Portland. For the Nuggets, Sunday vs. Golden State, Tuesday vs. Portland, Wednesday @ Oklahoma City.

• Cavaliers: Varejao
• Nuggets: Chandler, Miller

• Cavaliers: --
• Nuggets: --

• Lead Changes: 5
• Times Tied: 7

• Arena: Pepsi Center, Denver, CO
• Officials: #15 Bennett Salvatore, #27 Dick Bavetta, #34 Kevin Cutler
• Attendance: 16445
• Duration: 2:13