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Thunder rolls in to Denver

Mar 15, 2012 - 2:45 PM (Sports Network) - The Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City Thunder hope to bounce back from one of their worst losses of the season when they visit Northwest Division rival Denver.

The Thunder and the Nuggets are the two top teams in the Northwest, but OKC is dominating the division, leading Denver by a more than comfortable 8 1/2 games.

The Thunder, however, lost just their third home game of the season on Tuesday when Courtney Lee drained the game-winning three-pointer with 31.9 seconds remaining as the Rockets came back from an 11-point fourth-quarter deficit to edge Oklahoma City, 104-103.

Kevin Durant's 28 point, 12 rebound double-double was not enough for the Thunder, which capped off a five-game residency by losing two of three. Russell Westbrook had 19 points and James Harden contributed 16 in defeat.

"Our late-game execution on both ends of the floor wasn't up to the level that we have been all season," Thunder head coach Scott Brooks said.

The Nuggets, who are the sixth seed in the jumbled West playoff hunt, improved to 3-2 on a season-long nine-game homestand on Tuesday when Nene's free throws with 26.6 seconds left in overtime proved to be the difference as the final two of his 22 points helped lead Denver to a 118-117 victory over the Hawks.

Atlanta had a final shot with 3.5 seconds left after Zaza Pachulia caught an inbounds pass in the lane, but his layup was long and the Nuggets secured the rebound.

Ty Lawson stuffed the stat sheet for the Nuggets with 21 points, six rebounds, and seven assists, while Al Harrington and Danilo Gallinari chipped in 19 points apiece for Denver, which improved to 13-10 at home on the season and will finish the long residency with visits from Boston, Dallas and Detroit.

"You stay out more than month and your legs are not the same," said Gallinari, who is slowly returning to action after missing 13 games with in an ankle injury. "You have to get back in a rhythm. It's going to take awhile but I'm feeling much better."

In the last meeting between these two teams on Feb. 19 in OKC, a 124-118 overtime win by the Thunder, Durant had a career-high 51 points, Westbrook added 40 and Serge Ibaka recorded 14 points, 15 rebounds and a career-best 11 blocked shots for his first triple-double.

It was the first time in NBA history the same team had a 50-point scorer, a 40-point scorer and a triple-double on the same night.

Overall the Thunder have won three straight and four of five over the Nuggets.