Nuggets entertain road-weary 76ers
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}(SportsNetwork.com) - The Denver Nuggets begin a two-game homestand Wednesday night when the beleaguered Philadelphia 76ers pay their only visit to the Pepsi Center.
The Nuggets closed a brutal five-game road trip with a 119-100 victory Sunday over the Orlando Magic.
Danilo Gallinari lit up the Magic for 40 points. His career-best effort came on 12-of-21 shooting. He also made 10-of-11 free throws, connected on six 3- pointers and grabbed seven rebounds.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"It was one of those nights when the basket looks like a swimming pool," Gallinari said. "It was pretty big out there."
Jameer Nelson chipped in 15 points and five assists in just 16 1/2 minutes against his former team, while Kenneth Faried, Jusuf Nurkic, Will Barton and J.J. Hickson all scored 11 points in the rout.
Denver led 69-51 at halftime and kept its foot on the gas after the break. Gallinari and Faried outscored the Magic by themselves 24-21, in the third period, which ended with the visitors leading by a comfortable 102-72 margin.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Nuggets welcome the Utah Jazz on Friday.
Philly completes a three-game western jaunt on Wednesday and the road has been unkind to the 76ers. The Sixers have lost 16 in a row as the visitor, which is a team record, and haven't won on the road since Jan. 9 versus the Brooklyn Nets.
Robert Covington netted a team-high 21 points for the Sixers, who have dropped 16 straight on the road. Thomas Robinson, the fifth overall pick in the 2012 by the Kings, scored a career-high 16 points against his former team, while Nerlens Noel held his own against DeMarcus Cousins with 14 points, 10 boards and six blocked shots.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A Covington triple with 6:12 remaining broke a 100-100 tie and signified the Sixers' last make from the field. From there, they went 0-for-5 and committed eight of their 21 turnovers.
Two Rudy Gay free throws pulled Sacramento even at 105-105 with 1:20 remaining, and on the next Kings possession, Ray McCallum snuck in for a putback of a Cousins miss.
After Covington went 1-of-2 at the foul line with 39.5 seconds to go, Noel blocked a Cousins shot and forced him into a rushed fadeaway that drew iron.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Brett Brown called timeout with 8.2 seconds remaining and tried having Hollis Thompson play hero. Cousins, though, stripped the ball near the foul line, and the Kings survived a tight battle.
"We had far too many turnovers," said Brown. "To have 20 turnovers, on the road, and think you're going to win many games, that would not be correct."
The Sixers have won two straight over the Nuggets and three of the last four in the Mile High City.