Denver Nuggets hold off Milwaukee Bucks for 105 – 95 victory – NBA Recap(Part 1)
The Denver Nuggets have been impressive so far this season with some stellar displays and they continued the trend with a win over the Milwaukee Bucks. Playing in front of a hostile crowd at the Bradley Center, Milwaukee, the Nuggets raced ahead early on
and didn’t give the home side much chance of getting back into the game, eventually closing it out at 105 – 95.
The Nuggets lost super star forward Carmelo Anthony last season and stars like J.R. Smith and Kenyon Martin in the off season, raising doubts over their long term competitiveness. They have however performed much above expectations since the 2011-2012 NBA
season started, proving their critics wrong.
The key to Denver’s success so far has been the depth available to head coach George Karl and the team efforts put in against more illustrious opposition. The Nuggets again showed off their penchant for attacking on multiple fronts as 6 players got into
double-digits for scoring.
Danilo Gallinari and centre Nene both scored 14 points while Nene also grabbed 9 boards. Al Harrington impressed with 16 points off the bench but the best player for Denver on the night was reserve Corey Brewer. Brewer scored a team high 22 points earning
him high praise from the coach.
"Corey is playing well enough to the point where we are going to have find minutes for him," Karl said. "I think he brings energy to our team. Usually energy and aggressiveness are positive personalities of a successful team."
Brewer, who only joined the Nuggets this season after leaving NBA World Champions the Dallas Mavericks, said after the game that he was happy to contribute in any way he could for his new team.
"Personally when I come into the game, I just try to pick up the pace," he said. "Try to bring some energy. Try to get everybody going up and down because when we are playing fast, we are at our best."
Guard Arron Afflalo, who scored 11 points on the night, said it was the Nuggets defence more than offense which helped them secure the win.
"Our mental approach to the game was much, much better to start the game, especially on the defensive end," he said. "I thought defensively for the most part we had our focus tonight."
The Nuggets gave an indication as to what was going to happen later with their 10 – 4 burst to start the game. The first quarter saw them leading by 8 at one point and finished with the score 26 – 21 in their favour.
Even Denver’s early good form couldn’t have prepared the Bucks for the onslaught that followed in the second quarter. The Nuggets simply found their groove and piled on the points, 37 of them, against a helpless Milwaukee side who could only manage 23.
At halftime, the score card read 63 – 44 to Denver.
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