Kaman, Clippers down Nuggets
Chris Kaman scored 17 points, hauled in 21 rebounds, and blocked four shots to lead the Los Angeles Clippers over the Denver Nuggets, 101-90, at the Staples Center.
Quinton Ross also had 17 off the bench, and the Los Angeles Clippers' bench scored 50 points overall, as the team snapped a two-game losing streak. Cuttino Mobley added 14 points, Tim Thomas chipped in 13, and Al Thornton scored 12 to round out the five players to score in double-digits for Los Angeles.
Denver had its six-game winning streak snapped, despite Allen Iverson scoring 29 and adding nine assists, and Carmelo Anthony scoring 24. Marcus Camby had 18 points and 18 rebounds, but the Nuggets didn't get much else production in the first of four matchups between these teams.
The Los Angeles Clippers entered the second quarter trailing by three, but Denver went cold for a long stretch of that stanza, as the Los Angeles Clippers went on an 11-2 run to regain the momentum.
Chris Kaman had five points, and gave Los Angeles a 37-35 lead with a hook shot. Ross finished the run with a three, 5:30 before halftime, to stretch the team's lead to five.
Mobley made a pair of free throws with 36 seconds left before halftime to bring the Los Angeles Clippers' lead to eight, and after 1-of-2 free throws from Anthony, Los Angeles went into the break with a 53-46 edge.
That lead held for most of the third quarter, though Iverson drew Denver within three, 64-61, with a jumper more than halfway through the stanza. But again the Nuggets went cold, missing their next six shots.
Denver shot just 39.1 percent from the field overall, 58.1 from the free throw line, and 18.2 from beyond the arc.
"We couldn't get into a rhythm offensively," Iverson said. "This was a night we just didn't make shots. It was a bad team effort, and they played well."
The Los Angeles Clippers took advantage, outscoring Denver 13-5 to the end of the third quarter. Thornton highlighted the run with back-to-back shots, a jumper and a three, and Los Angeles led 77-66 going into the final period.
For the final 12 minutes, the Los Angeles Clippers made it too hard for Denver to climb back into the game. The Nuggets made back-to-back baskets or free throws exactly twice. The first of those, when Joe Smith's three followed Camby's layup, brought the score to 83-76.
Meanwhile, Los Angeles always had some kind of answer, as they shot 47.1 percent for the game, and made 8-of-15 threes. When Anthony's three brought the Nuggets back within seven with six minutes left, Thomas drilled a three of his own to make the score 91-81, and the Los Angeles Clippers lasted out for the win.
"Ross did a great job on Iverson and Carmelo. We did a great job defensively," Chris Kaman said. "(Denver's) transition baskets were limited. We're so shorthanded, we had to step it up, and we did tonight."
The Nuggets had gone on a 11-3 run in the middle of the first quarter to briefly take control of the game, starting when they were ahead one point. Camby had six points in the stretch, and capped it with a jumper, 2:56 from the end of the stanza, to make the score 22-13.
But the Los Angeles Clippers narrowed the gap, and Ross' jumper with 31 seconds left made it a 27-24 Denver lead after one quarter.
Game Notes
Denver's Linas Kleiza left the game in the fourth quarter after rolling his left ankle on a rebound attempt, went to the locker room and did not return...Los Angeles' Brevin Knight left and did not return after straining a groin in the third quarter...The Nuggets dropped to 3-3 on the road this season, while the Los Angeles Clippers improved to 4-2 at home.
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