Denver maintains 30-3 at home and 3-0 over Oklahoma City
It is safe to say that Kevin Durant is having one of his most explosive and well-rounded seasons of his career. Though he will most likely end up in second, he is one of the people on a very short list trying to challenge LeBron James for the honor of NBA MVP.
On top of this, Russell Westbrook is having a phenomenal season, and the Thunder are in a head-to-head battle with the San Antonio Spurs for the title of team to beat in the West. Regardless of the grandeur, the Nuggets' win in OKC gave them the distinction of being the only team to beat the Thunder three times this season, while continuing their win streak to 13.
In a battle that saw the Nuggets trailing by as many as 10 points during the first half, a season-high, 20-point game by veteran Andrew Miller helped the Nuggets bridge the game for their 13th straight win. Ty Lawson led the team with 25 points. The Nuggets took the lead early in the second half on a Danilo Gallinari three-pointer, and quickly built up a 13-point cushion. As the game dwindled, the Thunder pulled it back to within five points, but Miller’s 13 points in the 4th quarter helped the Nuggets hang on for the victory.
In a game that saw Denver score 72 points in the paint (a season-high for points allowed by the Thunder), it was obvious that Denver’s run and gun plan of attack came into play. Kevin Durant scored 34 points for the Thunder, and Westbrook tagged on 25 of his own. Durant said of the game that, “ That’s what they do. They get up and down the court. Our game is a little different. We want to run, but we want to run off our defense.” The Thunder defense allowed the Nuggets to score 114 points in the loss.
The Nuggets have two home games ahead of them against Philadelphia and Sacramento, while the Thunder have a two-game road series against Memphis and Orlando.
Photo courtesy of NBA
