LOS ANGELES — Like a college kid who overslept during an exam, the Nuggets woke up Tuesday, realizing the disaster they dozed through.
As if to make up for two shameful losses to draft lottery-bound teams, Denver destroyed the Los Angeles Clippers 117-99 on Tuesday night.’
“We came down hard on ourselves, and really realized that our backs were against the wall,” Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony said.
After losing to Sacramento (Sacramento!) and then Seattle (Seattle!), the Nuggets found themselves tied for the West’s eighth and final playoff spot with Golden State. The Warriors also won Tuesday, against Sacramento, so the Nuggets and Golden State are both 47-31 entering Thursday’s meeting in Oakland, Calif. It’s a pretty big game.
Both the Nuggets and Warriors have just four games left. After Thursday, Denver plays at Utah and then hosts Houston and Memphis. Golden State closes against the Clippers (23-55), at Phoenix and against Seattle. Though on paper, Golden State has the easier schedule (one playoff team compared to two for Denver), the Nuggets hold the tiebreaker against the Warriors. Even if Golden State wins Thursday, making the season series tied 2-2, the next tiebreaker is conference schedule, and the Nuggets would finish with a better conference record.
But the what-ifs can wait. As Denver coach George Karl said repeatedly Tuesday afternoon: “We control our own destiny.”
Tuesday night, they did just that. The Nuggets were back to their old ways, zipping down the court, controlling the pace and showcasing an aerial show of alley-oops.
Anthony continued to play efficient and emotional basketball. In the two awful losses, Anthony scored 47 against the Kings and 38 against the SuperSonics. And on Tuesday, he was overwhelming against the underwhelming Clippers. Anthony scored a team-high 36 points and hit 13-of-17 shots.
The game at the Staples Center was over after three quarters, thanks to some pretty good defense by the road team. After three, the Nuggets led 91-74, controlling the low post like they do when they play well. At that point, center Marcus Camby already had 16 rebounds in 30 minutes and the Nuggets had outrebounded the home team 38-27. When it was over, after some garbage time, Denver had finished with 53 rebounds and the Clippers had just 40.
“We zoned them, which slowed them down,” Karl said. “It gave us some defensive stability.”
Denver received sturdy contributions from two reserves who will be important in the closing stretch. J.R. Smith scored 10 points in 20 minutes. Linas Kleiza played 26 minutes and scored 15 points.
The win was important for the Nuggets, if only to get the bad taste out of their mouths. They had lost nine of their past 13 on the road.
Nuggets Recap
What you might have missed
Denver guard Allen Iverson shot 6-for-18 from the field, finishing with 21 points, five below his average. But he had nine assists and no turnovers.
Final thought
Denver got the bad taste out of its mouth and was able to get back to its fast-paced, high-flying ways. Now, it’s on to its biggest game of the season. A win, and the Nuggets are in great shape to make the playoffs. A loss, and they will need a lot of help.
Up next
At Golden State, 6 p.m., Thursday.
Benjamin Hochman: 303-954-1294 or bhochman@denverpost.com
