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Kaman leads balanced attack as Clippers roll by Nuggets

Nov 22, 2007 - 7:35 AM By John Reger PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

LOS ANGELES (Ticker) - The Denver Nuggets might be one of the hottest teams, but the shorthanded Los Angeles Clippers didn't care.

Chris Kaman collected 17 points, 21 rebounds and four blocks as the Clippers put an end to the Nuggets' six-game winning streak with a convincing 101-90 victory on Wednesday.

Quinton Ross poured in 17 points and rookie Al Thornton chipped in 12 and nine rebounds for Los Angeles, which has been so hurt by injuries that they didn't have enough healthy bodies for Tuesday's practice.

"I thought the guy who did the best job for us was Quinton Ross," Kaman said. "He came in and played Carmelo (Anthony) and Allen (Iverson) and did a great job. A lot of people don't talk about him, but he's the guy that comes in and does the good job for us."

With Corey Maggette (shoulder), Elton Brand (left Achilles) and Shaun Livingston (torn knee ligaments) all watching the game from the sidelines, the Clippers received help from their entire active roster.

"We're 6-4 and no one thought we were going to be were we are now, especially without Elton and Shaun," Kaman said. "But we got some guys who can play and they have come up big so far this year and, hopefully, it continues."

The victory moved coach Mike Dunleavy into a tie with Jack Ramsay on the Clippers all-time wins list with 158. Ramsay established the record when the team was known as the Buffalo Braves.

Los Angeles used a balanced scoring attack that saw all 10 players score at least two points en route to a 53-46 lead at intermission.

Anthony's 3-pointer sliced Denver's deficit to 88-81 with just over six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. But Los Angeles scored on its next four possessions, highlighted by two shots from the arc by Tim Thomas that created an 11-point edge.

"We played good defense down the stretch, but Tim started hitting some shots and did us in," Iverson said.

Iverson had 29 points and nine assists and Anthony chipped in 24 points for the Nuggets, who shot just 39 percent (34-of-87) from the floor.

"We didn't play together enough. We didn't pass the ball well enough," Nuggets coach George Karl said. "In the first half, if we would have played a little more together, a little more aggressive and intense, I think we would have had a better lead."

"This is a game we've got to just put behind us," said Denver center Marcus Camby, who grabbed 18 rebounds. "We've been playing particularly well the last week and a half and we're looking to redeem ourselves on Friday against Minnesota."