Afflalo scores big as the Nuggets rout the Suns 132-98
Carmelo Anthony will not be leaving Denver soon. Not with the red hot Miami Heat coming to town.
A player for whom the last few weeks have been a dogged transition from heart-throb to villain in Denver, warmed up for the Heat in style, scoring 28 points to spark the Nuggets to a crushing 132-98 win over the spineless Phoenix Sun on Tuesday.
With this performance, the Nuggets All-Star also redeemed himself of the misery he suffered two nights ago against the New Orleans Hornets, when he was restricted to a season-low 8 points.
"It was good to get back on the right track," Anthony said after the match.
In a dramatic night at the Pepsi Centre, the Suns allowed 20 points in the first quarter, and then gave away 82 in the second and third quarters combined. After shooting 6-for-17 from the field in the first 12 minutes, the Nuggets managed a conversion rate
of 66 percent over the next two quarters to take a 102-72 lead into the fourth.
Phoenix got off to a flying start as they completely rendered the Denver defence helpless in the early stages of the match. The Suns first rattled off a 13-6 spurt to start proceedings, and then pulled off a 15-6 run in the later stages of the first quarter
to tighten their grip on the match.
Anthony, desperate to regain the confidence of the home crowd, stepped up to the occasion at that point. He finished the first quarter with a jumper and then slipped in a lay-up early in the second to kick start a 21-7 run, which saw the Nuggets spark into
the lead with a J.R. Smith alley-oop dunk shot.
The Denver onslaught had just begun though.
They followed it with another 8-0 run, and then reeled off a 10-2 spurt to start the second half, as the home team started to run away with the match. The Nuggets finished the third frame with a 16-2 run to post 100 points before the start of the fourth
for the first time this season.
The story of the final quarter wasn’t different. The listless Suns were pounded 12-4 within the first four minutes of play, as the Nuggets put an emphatic end to their three-match losing skid.
Three Denver starters notched up double figures, with Aaron Afflalo leading the pack with a career-high 31 points and nine rebounds. Afflalo had a nearly perfect night, going 11-for-14 from the field and hit all seven of his foul shots. Anthony carved out
28 points and 10 boards, much to the surprise of the Nuggets, who were determined to boo him as soon as he set foot on the Pepsi Centre court. Nene finished with 11 but it was the Nuggets reserves that turned the heat on when it really mattered.
Ty Lawson, J.R. Smith and Al Harrington all came off the bench and combined for 41 points, 12 assists and 13 rebounds.
For the Suns, five players featured in double figures but none got above 15 points. Steve Nash led the pack with 15 points and seven assists, while Vince Carter finished with 15 points and six rebounds. The Suns lost control of the game with the departure
of the first quarter though, and failed to arrest their downward slide, losing eight of their last 10 games.
A frustrated Steve Nash said after the match, "We've had plenty of talks. If we keep talking, I think that lends itself to stupidity. We've got to go out there and demand more of ourselves and go out there and play harder and try to win even if it's not
pretty."
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