Nuggets Let Game 4 Slip Away

For three quarters the Denver Nuggets had the Los Angeles Lakers on the ropes, but when it mattered the Nuggets young squad let Game 4 slip away.

In fact, the Nuggets slowly got worst as the game went along with their scoring dropping each quarter.

And Denver’s offense was at its worst in the clutch. The Nuggets only made 6 of 18 shots in the fourth and had four turnovers in the fourth quarter.

It also didn’t help that the whistles were inconsistent. Denver had six fouls in the fourth, after being called for 13 for three quarters. The Lakers on the other hand were called for five after being called for only eight in the first three quarters.

With a little over a minute left in the game, Danilo Gallinari hit what he thought was a three-pointer, but his foot was on the line.

The following possession, Gallinari tried to draw an offensive foul on Pau Gasol’s pick, but no whistle was made and Ramon Sessions nailed a trey to put the Lakers up by three with 48 seconds left. Denver had a chance to trim the deficit to one, but Andre Miller was called for an offensive goaltend.

Steve Blake hit a three-pointer to seal the victory.

• Gallinari had arguably his best game of the series, scoring 20 points and grabbing six rebounds.
• After playing one of his best games, JaVale McGee was so-so statistically with 8 points and 4 rebounds. However, he did have two steals and four blocks.
• Andre Miller scored 10 of his 15 points in the first quarter. He made all five of his shots in the first quarter, but went 2 of 8 the rest of the game and had four turnovers.
• Corey Brewer gave Denver some valuable minutes. He blocked Blake and hit a trey in the third quarter to tie the game up.

No doubt overcoming a 3-1 deficit is tough, especially on the road. But this season is a learning process for this young Nuggets squad.