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Monday, Dec. 6 7:00pm ET
Van Exel scores 19 of 34 points in 4th | |||||
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 GAME FLOW
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- With his Denver Nuggets trailing by two points entering the fourth quarter, Nick Van Exel's teammates and coaches urged him to take control of the game. He followed their advice. Van Exel scored 19 of his 34 points in the final period as the Nuggets won their second straight road game by defeating the Philadelphia 76ers 94-77 Monday night.
Denver outscored Philadelphia 36-17 in the fourth quarter "Everybody on the bench kept telling me to take over, and the coaches kept calling isolation for me," Van Exel said. "They gave me the green light." Antonio McDyess had 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Nuggets, who lost their first five road games this season before beating the New York Knicks on Sunday at Madison Square Garden. Denver is 7-81 on the road dating back to 1997. Tyrone Hill scored 16 points and George Lynch grabbed 13 rebounds for the 76ers, whose two-game winning streak was snapped. Van Exel scored 12 of Denver's first 14 points in the fourth period and assisted on the one basket he didn't score in that stretch. "He's shooting 39 percent on the year," said 76ers coach Larry Brown. "Tonight it looked like 90 percent." Actually, Van Exel shot 59 percent from the field. He was 13-of-22, including 4-of-7 from 3-point range. He also got involved in a fourth-quarter confrontation with Matt Geiger after the Philadelphia center hit him in the cheek with his forearm while trying to stop a drive down the lane. Geiger was called for a flagrant foul, and the two players jawed at each other before the officials broke things up. "It was a good foul when a guy is going like I was, I know that," Van Exel said. "That's basketball. He had to do what he had to do." With 6:46 left in the game, 76ers guard Eric Snow got a technical foul for arguing a foul call against him on his block of McDyess' attempted dunk. Van Exel hit the free throw and McDyess sank both his foul shots to give Denver a 77-69 lead. After the teams traded free throws, Van Exel hit a 3-pointer to put the Nuggets ahead 81-70 and the 76ers never threatened after that. "They played very well that last part of the game," said 76ers guard Aaron McKie. "But we gave them too many easy baskets." The 76ers led by one point at halftime and increased their lead to 60-58 after three periods. Game notesRon Mercer, Denver's leading scorer, missed his third straight game due to the flu. ... Coming into the game, the 76ers had an .800 winning percentage at home against the Nuggets, their best mark against any NBA team. ... Philadelphia's next home game, on Wednesday against the Houston Rockets, will mark Charles Barkley's last regular-season game in Philadelphia, where he started his career. "Philadelphia will always be special to me," said Barkley, who was drafted in the first round in 1985. "If I'm lucky enough to make it to the Hall of Fame, I'll go in as a 76er." ...The Nuggets outscored Philadelphia 21-7 in fast-break points. | ALSO SEE NBA Scoreboard Denver Clubhouse Philadelphia Clubhouse RECAPS Denver 94 Philadelphia 77
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