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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
DENVER (AP) -- Rookie James Posey, a 6-foot-8 forward, seems to be settling comfortably into his new role as a shooting guard.
|  | | Raef Lafrentz, right, had 9 points and 11 rebounds. |
Posey hit six of eight shots from 3-point range and finished with 20
points to help the Denver Nuggets beat the Utah Jazz 112-92 on
Saturday night.
Antonio McDyess scored 33 points and Nick Van Exel 27 for the
Nuggets, who outscored the Jazz in every quarter and never trailed,
withstanding Utah rallies in both the third and fourth periods.
Raef LaFrentz had 11 rebounds and McDyess 10, and Van Exel had 14 assists for the Nuggets, who had lost three straight to the Midwest Division-leading Jazz.
"I was surprised by Posey and the way he shot the ball,"
McDyess said. "It was almost automatic for him in the corner."
Utah guard John Stockton said his team's scouting report said Posey can shoot the 3-pointer. As he gained confidence with it, he
wasn't missing anything."
Posey, previously a starter at small forward, has struggled at
times in his new position. But he scored a season-high 25 points at
Washington on Wednesday and had 21 at New Jersey last Sunday.
"My teammates and my coaches are telling me to shoot the
ball," Posey said. "So when I get an open look, I'm shooting it.
I'm on a high right now. I'm feeling confident."
Karl Malone had 27 points and 13 rebounds for Utah, and Bryon
Russell added 17 points.
Utah coach Jerry Sloan was ejected after drawing his second
technical foul with 2:46 left in the game.
Denver's 20-point victory tied its largest winning margin in the
history of the 119-game series; the Nuggets beat Utah 116-96 on
Oct. 27, 1979, also in Denver.
Denver, winner of only 21, 11 and 14 games the past three
seasons, improved to 30-43.
"This is obviously a big win for us," Denver coach Dan Issel
said. "We have really concentrated on the season not being over,
that we need to get to 35, 36 wins to have something to build on."
Malone thinks the Nuggets actually have been underachieving.
"Those guys have got talent. I don't know why their record is
what it is," he said. "They've got to be driving coach Issel
crazy. We knew they'd be ready to play us."
Utah, trailing 47-39 at the half, mounted a 10-2 run early in
the third period to get within two points. Baskets by Malone kept
the Jazz close, but Posey hit consecutive 3-pointers to make it
63-53 with 5:35 left in the quarter.
George McCloud's 3-point basket made it 75-56, and his free throw on Sloan's first technical gave Denver an 80-60 lead late in
the period.
Russell had two straight 3-pointers early in the final quarter
during Utah's 9-0 run that got the Jazz within 86-74, and another
Russell long-range shot made it 92-83 with 6:14 left. But the Jazz
got no closer as Denver fashioned a 9-0 flurry, including two
rebound baskets by McDyess.
Utah beat Golden State 114-97 at home Friday night, and Sloan
said his team appeared sluggish on the second night of the
back-to-back games.
"Our energy level is a huge concern," he said. "The game last
night was not a long, hard, physical game. We should have had more
energy. The Nuggets had all the energy. They dunked over our heads.
They made layups. When they wanted to rebound, they rebounded. We
couldn't get anything going and couldn't make any stops."
With Posey hitting three 3-pointers, the Nuggets jumped out to
their biggest lead of the first half at 25-13 with 3:42 left in the
opening quarter. Utah went on an 8-2 run to cut the deficit to
27-21 at the end of the period.
Jacque Vaughn's basket got Utah within 29-25 early in the second
period, but McDyess scored seven points in the period and Denver
took a 47-39 lead at intermission. The Jazz shot only 29 percent in
the quarter.
Game notes
The Nuggets were without guard Tariq Abdul-Wahad, who underwent season-ending surgery Friday to repair a torn ligament in
his left wrist. He will be in a cast for eight weeks, then begin
rehabilitation. ... Despite the loss, Utah has won 15 of its last
18 games and 10 of its past 13 road games. ... Denver shot 51
percent compared to Utah's 43 percent and also was 11-of-20 shooting from
3-point range compared to Utah's 5-of-16. ... McDyess moved past
Bobby Jones into 17th place on the Nuggets' career scoring list
with 4,834 points. ... The crowd of 19,099 was the Nuggets' fourth
sellout of the season.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Utah Clubhouse
Denver Clubhouse
RECAPS
Cleveland 109
Boston 103
Charlotte 90
Chicago 87
Houston 115
Atlanta 93
Denver 112
Utah 92
Portland 113
Milwaukee 79
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