NBA: Nuggets lead from wire-to-wire, live to fight anew

The Denver Nuggets lead from opening tip to the final buzzer, but needed to survive a late comeback try from the Golden State Warriors, before their 107-100 win was in the books, Tuesday (Wednesday, PHL time) at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado, to stay alive in their NBA playoffs series, down 3-2.

The Nuggets needed a game-winner from veteran point guard Andre Miller, to win the series opener, 97-95, but they proceeded to lose the next three matches, 131-117, 110-108, 115-101, the last two in Golden State, thanks to Stephen Curry's hot hand.

This time though, the Nuggets pounced early, as Wilson Chandler canned a triple for the first score of the game. Warriors rookie Harrison Barnes would get his side within a point, 12-11, but that would be the closest they would get. A 24-11 run by the home team put them on top, 36-22, after the first period.

Two charities by Chandler late in the second period gave the Nuggets their first 20-point buffer, 63-42, with 1:35 before the halftime intermission. However, the Warriors came out of the break on fire, as 14-2 run, half of that courtesy of point guard Jarret Jack, got Golden State's deficit down to nine, 74-65, after Jack nailed a three-pointer with 5:02 left in the third.

Denver swung back with 12 unanswered though, reviving their 21-point advantage, 86-65. Klay Thompson then managed a triple to close out the quarter, making it a 17-point game, 86-69, with 12 minutes still to play.

The Warriors kept fighting back. A 15-7 run through the first half of the fourth canto, got them within single-digits anew, 93-84, following another Thompson trey, forcing the home team to sue for time with 6:39 left.

Back-to-back hits by Stephen Curry, followed by a Jarret Jack jumper, put the score at 98-93, 4:15 still to play, as the Warriors threatened to steal this one. After a Festus Ezeli offensive foul, Andre Miller hit a fadeaway off a time out, which was matched by a Thompson make, 100-95, 2:16 left.

The Warriors got a pair of looks from downtown, one each for Curry and Thompson, but both failed to connect. On the other end, Chandler showed them how it's done, draining a clutch trey to make it an eight-point affair with just 1:26 remaining, 103-95. Dunks by Andre Iguodala and Kenneth Faried then closed this one out.

Six Nuggets finished with double-digit scoring, led by Andre Iguodala's 25 points, which came with 12 rebounds, seven assists, two steals and a block. Ty Lawson added 19 points and 10 assists, Wilson Chandler also scored 19, while Kenneth Faried put together a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Rookie Harrison Barnes top-scored for the Warriors with 23 points on 7-of-17 shooting, missing a double-double by a single rebound. Jarret Jack poured in 20, but turned the ball over six times, while Klay Thompson dropped 19.

Stephen Curry was held to 15 points on 7-of-19 shooting and had five fouls to his name. He did dish out eight assists versus just two turnovers.

The Nuggets came up with 12 steals, which contributed to 17 Warriors turnovers. - AMD, GMA News