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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- Raef LaFrentz had to do something -- and he
had to do it quickly.
|  | | Antonio McDyess of the Nuggets dunks over Tim Duncan for two of his 19 points. |
After going 0-for-11 in his previous two games, LaFrentz headed
straight from the second game to the practice court, shooting about
750 jumpers late into the night.
What the long-term effects are is anyone's guess, but two nights later LaFrentz led the Denver with 28 points as the Nuggets beat the San Antonio Spurs 102-96 on Thursday night.
The win ended Denver's five-game losing streak and LaFrentz's
frustration -- at least temporarily.
"I don't think I've ever been around a player who, after a
game, has gone out to practice that many shots," Nuggets coach Dan
Issel said. "If he's going to work on his game like that, he's
going to have games like this.
"That was a big weight off his shoulders."
LaFrentz, who had been averaging 10 points, capped off his
season-high performance by hitting a 3-pointer and three free
throws in the final minute. He also had 13 rebounds.
The victory came on the heels of a tumultuous week for the Nuggets.
Following Sunday's overtime loss in Boston, Issel scheduled an
early practice on Monday in Denver, which the players didn't like.
Feeling that Issel mistreated the struggling LaFrentz during a
postgame tirade, the players skipped practice Monday without
consulting the coach.
Denver players and Issel put the furor to rest.
LaFrentz said the late-night shooting session was all he could think of after Tuesday's loss to Miami.
"I went out and shot and shot and shot," he said.
But he hesitated to link it to his performance Thursday night.
"It would be nice if I could attribute my success tonight to
that, because then I could say it's something I could control -- that I could go out and shoot and shoot and shoot and keep playing like this.
"But what it really amounts to is, the shots were there for me
tonight and I was knocking them down. The team kept coming back to
me and I was able to come up with a big game."
The Nuggets saw new confidence in LaFrentz.
"Man, he played awesome tonight," said Antonio McDyess, who
added 19 points and 12 rebounds for Denver. "If he played like
that every night, the sky's the limit. He played like an
All-Star."
The Nuggets turned 15 San Antonio turnovers into 22 points to
overcome a 12-point first-half deficit and keep the game close.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said 21-of-31 shooting from the foul
line also contributed to the loss.
"That has been our nemesis on the road, but not so much at home
until now," he said.
David Robinson had 23 points and 12 rebounds for San Antonio,
but was 3-of-7 from the line.
With Denver trailing by one point with less than a minute
remaining, LaFrentz hit a 3-pointer to make it 98-96 with 47.9
seconds left.
The Spurs failed to regain the lead as Antonio Daniels threw up
an airball and two shots by Sean Elliott fell short.
The Nuggets' final points came off two free throws by LaFrentz and one by Nick Van Exel, who finished with 18 points.
Robinson, who went 3-of-15 against New York last week, had 17
points in the first half but was held scoreless in the final
quarter. He had been averaging 12.6 points this year, compared with
his career average of 23.7.
Tim Duncan scored 17 for the Spurs but got into foul trouble.
The Spurs were ahead by 12 after an 11-2 spurt that included
3-pointers by Danny Ferry and Terry Porter with 6:03 left in the
second quarter.
But Denver answered with nine straight points after 3-pointers
by Van Exel and Voshon Lenard for a 46-45 lead with 3:16 left.
Game notes
The Spurs placed starting point guard Avery Johnson on the
injured list with a bruised left quadriceps and sore left hamstring
and activated guard Derrick Dial. ... The Nuggets are 8-4 at home
and 3-9 on the road. ... The win was the Nuggets' first in San
Antonio since Nov. 3, 1996.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Denver Clubhouse
San Antonio Clubhouse
Posey speaks out on his AthletesDirect web site
May: In Denver, the end is near for Issel
Hughes: It's not the coaches, it's the players
RECAPS
Toronto 70
New York 68
Denver 102
San Antonio 96
Houston 98
Golden State 95
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