Denver Nuggets vs. Houston Rockets – 1st half analysis
The last time the Denver Nuggets and the Houston Rockets took on each other a week ago, Carmelo Anthony had a banner night. Scoring 50 points for the first time this season, Anthony was simply unstoppable. But even though Carmelo may have won the scoring
battle that night, the Rockets eventually won the war as they pinned the Nuggets, 108-103 in the mile-high altitude.
On Monday night, the Bronchos trotted onto the courts of Toyota Centre, aiming to exact revenge of that painful defeat, one that has paved way for them losing two of the last three games.
They certainly did play like a scorned team.
Aaron Afflalo, who had a horror game last time when he was pitched against the Rockets, was well past his demons as he started the night with four straight points. Three minutes later, he struck again. This time, it was in the form of a long range effort
as the visitors roared into the match with a 12-3 burst. The Rockets soon picked up pace on the offense, but their defence simply had no answers to halt the offensive onslaught from the Nuggets.
The Nuggets poured shots at a canter throughout the first 12 minutes of play, which they eventually culminated with a 6-2 run to gain a 32-19 lead.
The Denver outfit continued in the second frame from where they left in the first as they continued to pile on pressure on the Rockets with their upbeat offensive game. Anthony started with a resounding jam and then struck with a pair of shots from the charity
stripe to increase the advantage to 36-21, nearly one and a half minutes into the quarter.
Houston however, rallied back a bit with a 7-0 spurt to change the flow of the match slightly. The run was neutralized emphatically though as Al Harrington scored seven consecutive points within a span of 17 seconds to restore a 14-point advantage.
With 7:02 to go till the break, Ty Lawson slipped in a layup to make the score 45-31 and the Nuggets appeared to be cruising at that point.
They were in for a surprise though.
With 6:47 to play in the half, Courtney Lee, who grasped the court as a reserve, canned a three-point play to reduce the deficit. His shot proved to be the catalyst of a 27-9 run in the ensuing minutes as the Rockets not only slashed the deficit, but also
went ahead by 58-54 at the buzzer.
By halftime, Lee led all scorers with 14 points, including 3-of-4 from downtown while Aaron Brooks had 11 points. For the Nuggets, Anthony had 12 points while Chauncey Billups had 11 points.
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