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Anthony drops 35, Nuggets beat Thunder

Jan 20, 2011 - 7:13 AM Denver, CO (Sports Network) - After learning Wednesday that he would not be heading to New Jersey, Carmelo Anthony netted a game-high 35 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead Denver to a 112-107 win over Oklahoma City.

Rumors that Anthony and Chauncey Billups would be shipped to the Nets were nixed when New Jersey owner Mikhail Prokhorov instructed negotiators to walk away from trade talks.

"[Anthony] was good. I didn't expect anything else. He's always had a professionalism to him that when game time starts he's usually involved and focused on what we have to do," Nuggets head coach George Karl said.

Billups and Nene both had 16 points for the Nuggets, who have won four of their last five contests.

Russell Westbrook had 28 points and 10 assists while Kevin Durant posted 22 points as the Thunder dropped their second game in a row on the heels of a four-game win streak. Serge Ibaka tallied 16 points and nine rebounds in the losing effort.

"We didn't do much defensively to prevent them from scoring," Thunder head coach Scott Brooks said.

In a competitive game, Denver went on a 7-0 spurt early in the fourth quarter to take a 94-89 edge.

With six minutes remaining, it was a one-point game, 99-98, following a Nick Collison hook shot, but the Thunder could not capture the lead even after they got within one again with 3 1/2 minutes left to play.

Billups hit a floater with just under two minutes remaining to cap a 6-0 run and extend the Denver lead to seven at 110-103. Durant hit two free throws, but Nene made it a seven-point contest again with a finger roll layup with 20.9 seconds remaining and the Nuggets held on.

The first quarter saw five ties, but Denver went on a 11-point run, making the score 25-14 following Nene's slam with 3:24 left. But the Thunder answered back with a 10-point burst of their own to pull with in one and a Melvin Ely layup gave Denver a 27-24 lead heading into the second.

Denver increased its lead to as much as seven in the second quarter, but Oklahoma City rallied for a 42-41 lead when Westbrook hit two free throws with 5 1/2 minutes left in the half.

The two teams headed into the break knotted at 55.

The Thunder took a 63-57 lead early in the third quarter, but could not pull away. Anthony's three-point play made it a two-point game with less than two minutes left in the third quarter.

Martin then made a dunk with 2.5 seconds left in the frame to pull the Nuggets within 86-85 heading into the final period.

Game Notes

The Thunder franchise has lost its last seven visits to Denver and hasn't won in the city since Match 28, 2007 when they were the Seattle SuperSonics...It was Westbrook's fifth straight game with at least a double-double...Anthony scored 21 of his points in the second half, while Westbrook scored 22...Billups also had six assists.