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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Monday, May 4, 2009

Nuggets fly by Mavericks

Associated Press

Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Denver Nuggets guard Anthony Carter shoots over Dallas Mavericks guard Jason Kidd in the second quarter. Carter, a University of Hawai'i alum, had 12 points and four assists.

JACK DEMPSEY | Associated Press

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DENVER — If not for Nene's breakout first half, Carmelo Anthony's fourth-quarter fireworks and Anthony Carter's defensive deftness wouldn't have mattered much.

Nene kept Denver in it until his teammates could turn this one into another laugher, scoring 18 of his playoff career-high 24 points in the first half of the Nuggets' 109-95 rout of the Dallas Mavericks yesterday in the opener of their second-round series.

"'Melo in foul trouble and kind of searching for an offensive confidence, we got it from Nene," Nuggets coach George Karl said. "The balance of our team has quietly been a strength of who we are. In the second half 'Melo got into the game, J.R. (Smith) jumped into the game and our defense was fantastic."

Nene, who beat testicular cancer last year, played more minutes than ever this season and over the last month he really hit a wall. In the Nuggets' five-game dispatch of New Orleans in the first round, he averaged 9.0 points and 7.8 rebounds.

His fantastic first half saved the Nuggets, who poured it on the second half thanks to 20 Dallas turnovers, eight by Jason Kidd, who turned over the ball just three times in the first round.

"Offensively, we were good," Karl said, "but defensively we were really good."

Thanks to their stifling defense, the Nuggets outscored the Mavs 29-4 on fast breaks, but the disparity that really bothered Dallas coach Rick Carlisle was the 36-13 advantage Denver had at the line.

"We're going to have to raise our level of aggression if that's what's going to get us to the free throw line," said Carlisle, who was particularly bothered that Dirk Nowitzki took just four foul shots plus a technical.

Meanwhile, Anthony scored 14 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter, including a dunk off Smith's behind-the-back assist that rocked the arena.

Nowitzki led Dallas with 28 points and 10 boards.

The Nuggets led 82-80 when they iced it with a 15-4 run. It began with two free throws and a bucket from Chris Andersen, who blocked six shots, and two fouls shots and a jumper from Anthony.

From there on, it was the brand of basketball the Nuggets have been playing all season, with Billups and Carter, a University of Hawai'i alum, taking turns leading the way at both ends of the floor. Carter finished with 12 points, four assists, two steals and three rebounds.

Game 2 is tomorrow night at the Pepsi Center, where the Nuggets have won 14 straight.

HAWKS 91, HEAT 78

ATLANTA — The final blowout went to Atlanta, so it's the Hawks who'll get a shot at LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Joe Johnson scored 27 points to make up for a mostly disappointing series and the Hawks won the first Game 7 ever played in Atlanta, beating Dwayne Wade and the Miami Heat to advance to tomorrow's second round of the NBA playoffs for the first time in a decade.

"It feel like the monkey's off Atlanta's back," said Atlanta forward Josh Smith, who finished with 21 points. "Not just the team's back. The whole city."

After a back-and-forth first quarter that ended with Atlanta ahead only 20-18, the Hawks pulled out to a 49-36 lead by halftime and led by as many as 29 points in the fourth period.

Every game in the series was decided by at least 10 points, and this one wasn't as close as the final score.

"I'm very encouraged by this season," said Wade, who scored 31 points. "The team that won 15 games last year came back to win 43 games this year and took Atlanta to seven games in the playoffs. We've got something to build on."

NOTES

Nuggets: Denver vice president of basketball operations Mark Warkentien has been named the NBA's executive of the year.

Warkentien was the architect of the biggest deal in the NBA this season, trading Allen Iverson for Chauncey Billups. The move sparked Denver's franchise-tying 54-win regular season and the Nuggets' first playoff series win in 15 years.

Magic: Starting guard Courtney Lee will not travel with the Orlando Magic to Boston as he recovers from surgery on his fractured sinus.

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