Kings 116 - 119 Nuggets
Final - OT
  for this game

Banged-up Nuggets open homestand vs. Kings

Mar 5, 2012 - 3:43 PM (Sports Network) - Injuries slowed the Denver Nuggets badly in recent weeks but George Karl's club has begun to come out of its funk and will shoot for a fourth consecutive win when they open up a season-long nine-game homestand versus the Sacramento Kings.

The Nuggets just finished up a brief two-game road trip in perfect fashion by disposing of the San Antonio Spurs, 99-94, on Sunday. Ty Lawson just missed a triple-double in that one with 22 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds as Denver held on.

"Tonight I think we were as fundamentally solid as they (the Spurs) were. They are just one of the most fundamentally tough teams to beat," Karl said. "We never lost our belief and faith that we could win the game."

Al Harrington added 16 points and Arron Afflalo finished with 14 for the Nuggets, who continue to play without leading scorer Danilo Gallinari (foot), starting big man Nene (calf) and reserve sharpshooter Rudy Fernandez (back).

"It's always tough to win in San Antonio," Denver forward Corey Brewer said. It's a good win for our team especially after the big win the other night in Houston so it's another big win for us."

The Nuggets, who are 10-8 at Pepsi Center this season, will also entertain Cleveland, New Orleans, Memphis, Atlanta, Oklahoma City, Boston, Dallas and Detroit on their long residency.

The Kings, meanwhile, have lost three straight and will be attempting to salvage the finale of a three-game road trip tonight.

Sacramento's latest setback came in Phoenix last night, a 96-88 loss to the Suns. Marcus Thornton led the Kings with 21 points, DeMarcus Cousins scored 16 with 14 rebounds and Tyreke Evans had 17 points but Sacramento shot just 38 percent and fell to 2-9 in their last 11 games.

"They're a hard team to play because they're so athletic and they've got a lot of scorers," said Suns coach Alvin Gentry. "But I thought we did a good job. Our defense was really good."

Denver has won four straight over the Kings and six consecutive at Pepsi Center in the series.






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