Philadelphia 76ers spoil homecoming for Andre Iguodala with comfortable victory over Denver Nuggets – NBA Recap
Andre Iguodala made a trip to his former home with his new team as the Denver Nuggets took on the Philadelphia 76ers in the season opener for both teams. Iguodala received some brotherly love from his old team but when it came
down to business, the Sixers held down their fort and defeated the Nuggets 84-75. Denver seemed to be out of rhythm as one of the highest scoring teams from last season was held to only 75 points by the Sixers, who once again played tremendous defence. Spencer
Hawes had the night of his career, scoring 16 points, 12 rebounds and 5 blocks. The center dominated the defensive end, grabbing rebounds and blocking shots all night long. Ty Lawson led the Nuggets scoring with 16 points, 7 assists and 5 rebounds.
The Nuggets got the first points on the board for the game, but the Sixers quickly compiled a 9-0 run to take an early 12-6 lead in the first period. The Nuggets came back and tied the game with a slam by Kenneth Faried, but the
Sixers scored back to back three point shots to extend their lead to 20-12. The Sixers led 25-22 at the end of the first period. The game remained pretty close in the second quarter, with the Sixers barely holding on to the lead till a three point by Ty Lawson
tied the game at 38. The Sixers compiled another 8-0 run to close the period and take a 46-38 lead into the halftime break.
A hook shot by Lavoy Allen in the third period gave the Sixers a 57-44 lead, and they managed to compile the same lead at the end of the period where they were leading 65-52. Nick Young scored a three pointer to start the scoring
for the Sixers in the final period and gave them a 68-54 lead, their highest of the night. The Nuggets finally woke up after that and went on a 16-3 run that saw them cutting the Sixers lead all the way down to only one point, as they trailed 70-71 with 4:41
left in the game. Philadelphia scored the next five points and a finger roll by Jason Richardson a minute and a half later had them back up 80-71 with 2:50 left in regulation. The Sixers cruised to a comfortable 84-75 victory from there on.
Jrue Holiday finished with 14 points, 11 assists and 6 rebounds but was 5 of 16 from the field. Dorell Wright added 14 points and 7 rebounds off the bench while Thaddeus Young finished with 13 points and 5 rebounds. Andre Iguodala
had 11 points, 4 assists and 4 rebounds in his debut for the Nuggets, while Andre Miller finished with 10 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists. The Nuggets outscored the Sixers 54-47 in rebounds, but the Sixers had 5 fewer turnovers at 15 and 6 more blocks at
11. Both teams shot poorly from the field on a night when points seemed hard to come by.
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