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Iverson and Anthony combine for 69 points as Nuggets win

Dec 29, 2007 - 8:12 AM By Ryan Leong PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

OAKLAND, California (Ticker) -- Two of the highest-scoring teams in the NBA went shot-for-shot until the very end, and the Denver Nuggets walked out winners.

Allen Iverson scored 39 points and handed out six assists to lead the Nuggets to their third straight win, 124-120 over the Golden State Warriors on Friday night.

"We just played well down the stretch and did everything we needed to do to get the win," Iverson said.

Carmelo Anthony added 30 points for Denver, which improved to 6-7 on the road while handing the Warriors their first home loss since December 3.

"I have no complaints about the game," Warriors coach Don Nelson said. "We gave it our all. I don't think we made enough shots to win but it was a heck of a game to coach and I'm sure to play in. You don't always win them but we gave it our all and I'm very happy with the way we performed."

At 108.1 and 106.8 points, respectively, Golden State and the Nuggets rank just behind the Phoenix Suns in points per game. Friday's matchup began at a furious pace and continued throughout.

"No, it's not fun playing them," Iverson said. "I don't know why you'd think it be fun to play them. It's fun for the fans but it's not fun for the guys trying to defend the play. They just keep coming at you all game long. The team shoots 104 shots, that's tough on your defense."

The only time either team seemed to slow was in the final minutes, when the Warriors, trailing 118-116, clamped down on defense and forced the Nuggets into a shot-clock violation with 1:42 remaining. Baron Davis capitalized on the turnover by driving for a basket to tie the game.

But Iverson responded with a jumper and Davis turned the ball over, leading to a pair of free throws by Anthony that pushed the lead to 122-118 with 53 seconds to play.

Davis then hit a jumper and, after another shot-clock violation by Denver, Golden State had a chance to take the lead. Stephen Jackson attempted a deep 3-pointer that just barely hit the rim. Marcus Camby grabbed the rebound and nailed two free throws to seal the win.

"I was just making sure I made them," Camby said. "I've been struggling from the line all season long and I just wanted to step up and be held accountable with what I could bring to this team. I knocked them down and we were able to get some stops at the end to pull it out."

Jackson led five Warriors in double digits with 32 points. Davis finished with 29.

"My team relied on me to win tonight and I didn't play well," Jackson said. "You can't say if because if I hit that (3-point) shot we wouldn't be talking about it. Point-blank, I've got to shoot better, 9-for-27 and 5-for-15 from the 3-point line. We have to work too hard and I've got to play a lot better and the shots I take I've got to shoot better."

The Nuggets jumped out to an 11-point lead after Anthony hit a free throw to make it 29-18 with 3:23 left in the opening quarter. Golden State struggled to make a basket, shooting just 4-of-14 up to that point.

The Warriors chipped away at the early deficit and trailed, 39-32, after the first frame.

In the second quarter, the Warriors went on a 9-2 run to make it a three-point game on Matt Barnes' layup with 6:41 remaining until the half.

The Nuggets went into the half with a 71-64 advantage thanks to 60 percent (28-of-47) shooting and 24 points from Anthony.

"I'm having a lot of fun because we know any given night one of us can go out there and win the basketball game," Anthony said. "Some nights (Iverson) may score 50-40 and I might score 15 but we win the basketball game."

Jackson scored 15 in the third quarter and got the crowd on its feet by ending the period with a 3-pointer at the buzzer, but the Nuggets still led, 102-97.