PHILADELPHIA — When Carmelo Anthony offered a personal assessment after the Nuggets’ 110-99 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers, he could have been speaking about the team.
Anthony shot a dismal 3-of-12 from the field and scored 12 points Sunday at the Wells Fargo Center. He played just four minutes, 32 seconds in the second quarter.
He said his knees tightened up on the bench and after that, “I couldn’t really find a rhythm.”
Neither could the team.
Playing without big men Kenyon Martin and Al Harrington, the Nuggets were hammered in the paint all game, particularly in a decisive third quarter, when the Sixers built a 16- point lead. Denver also turned the ball over 17 times, including four crucial times in the fourth quarter. Two of those were by Anthony.
Not having Martin and Harrington “affected the rhythm of the rotation,” Nuggets coach George Karl said after his team’s four-game win streak was snapped. “When you’re on the road, those things probably affect you a little bit more than at home.
“Trying to get your role players to play as starters is a little bit harder on the road.”
Chauncey Billups and J.R. Smith were bright spots for Denver.
Billups finished with 27 points and five assists after scoring 16 in the first quarter. Smith scored 23 points and grabbed a team-high nine rebounds.
The Sixers “played hard,” Billups said after his team fell to 0-2 against Philadelphia this season. “I really like (Sixers coach Doug Collins). He’s doing a great job with that young talent.”
The Nuggets entered the fourth quarter down 82-72.
They closed the lead to seven on a Ty Lawson jump shot early in the fourth but ran out of gas late in the game.
The second half was in contrast to the game’s opening minutes, when Billups carried the team to an early lead.
The veteran point guard scored the Nuggets’ first 10 points, giving the team a five-point lead.
The Nuggets went into the second quarter with a 34-32 lead despite allowing the Sixers to shoot 63.2 percent from the floor.
The Sixers continued shooting well (55 percent) in a back-and-forth second quarter that ended with the Nuggets down 54-51.
Andre Iguodala paced the Sixers with 24 points, seven assists, four steals and three rebounds.
Thaddeus Young also turned in a strong performance for the Sixers, scoring 21 points and grabbing seven rebounds.
“It’s tough,” Billups said, “especially in this building. (The Sixers) get out, and they rebound and they go. Before you know it, it’s a 4-0 run and then it’s a 12-2 run. And it’s tough to get back in the game sometimes.”
Nuggets Recap
What you might have missed
George Karl offered a tongue-in-cheek update of his current health:
“I’m a machine. I’m a 59-year-old tuned machine — compared to the last 15 or 20 years when I was a fat pig sitting here.”
On a more serious note, Karl, who underwent treatment for neck and throat cancer last year, noted:
“I feel great. My health reports have been good. I’m trying to rebuild my immune system so I don’t have to do it again.”
Final thought
The Nuggets need to finish this five-game trip on a high note.
Chris Melchiorre, Special to The Denver Post
Denver at New Jersey
5 p.m. tonight, ALT/NBATV, 950 AM
Spotlight on Devin Harris: The point guard, long rumored to be coming to the Nuggets as part of the Carmelo Anthony deal that fell through this month, has averaged 9.4 assists per game in January, which would be a career best for a month. In his last five games, he has averaged 12.2 points, 11.0 assists and just 1.6 turnovers.
