Warriors foul it up in the end

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Dec 6, 2003 | by Jeff Faraudo, STAFF WRITER

DENVER -- The Golden State Warriors might have been able to overcome a dreadful start ... They might have been able to survive coach Eric Musselman's first ejection of his career ...

They might have been able to withstand a red-hot Denver Nuggets team and 17,512 frenzied fans at the Pepsi Center ...

They might have overcome it all, had they been able to overcome themselves.

Down 20 points just 45 seconds into the second half when their coach was tossed, the Warriors fought all the way back against the best Nuggets team in at least 14 years, then gave it up at the foul line, losing 98-91.

"It's been a problem all year long -- we're shooting terrible," Nick Van Exel said after the Warriors shot 2-for-8 from the line in the fourth quarter. "It's mental now, and it cost us the game tonight."

The game was a choppy grinder compared to the wire-to-wire sprint these two teams put on two nights before in a 117-109 Nuggets win in Oakland.

The chief similarity -- besides the outcome --was another impressive performance by precocious rookie Carmelo Anthony, the one- season-and-out Syracuse product who scored 28 points and tortured the Warriors at times.

"He's a superstar," Musselman said of Anthony, who has played all of 19 NBA games.

Yet, the results speak for themselves. The Nuggets entered the game alone in first place in the Midwest Division for the first time since Dec. 5, 1989 -- 14 years to the day. They added to that lead over idle Dallas, winning their sixth straight to move to 13-6, equaling their best start since joining the NBA in 1976.

"Nothing surprises me in this league," said Van Exel, who played 31/2seasons with the Nuggets. "But they've done it very fast. That's the surprising part."

Anthony, who also had seven rebounds and four assists, said he believes the Nuggets are just beginning to hit their stride.

"When you just blow a team out, that is not as fun," he said, unconcerned that the Warriors rallied. "We kept our composure. Our chemistry is coming together."

The Warriors, who slipped a game under .500 to 8-9, seemed out of this one from the start. They trailed 28-18 at the quarter, 50-35 at the half, and then things really got out of hand.

Musselman already had been hit with one technical late in the first half, complaining when Mike Dunleavy was called for a foul after Denver's Chris Andersen jumped over his back and was flipped onto the floor.

But 45 seconds into the third quarter, with Denver up 52-35, referee Mark Jones turned suddenly and gave Musselman another "T," worth an immediate ejection.

"For what? For what?" Musselman cried out at the time.

Afterward, he continued to plead innocent. "I was actually shocked," he said. "I'd like to get my money's worth."

That's as far as he went. "I've got two kids to get through college," he said, opting to avoid a fine.

Voshon Lenard, who had a career-high 38 points against the Warriors on Wednesday, made the technical free throw, then dropped in a 10-footer, pushing the lead to 55-35.

But Golden State got back in the game quickly, sparked by Dunleavy, who spent much of the first half on the bench with two early fouls. The second-year Duke product hit three 3-pointers in a 13-point third quarter, and the Warriors trailed just 71-65 entering the fourth.

A rebound basket by Calbert Cheaney with 5:02 left completed the rally, pushing Golden State in front, 80-79. The lead changed hands five more times, but the Warriors had no answer for the free-throw disparity.

While missing six straight at one stretch in the final quarter, they watched Denver convert 12 of their final 13 attempts. The Warriors finished the game 10-for-21 at the line.

"Obviously, it was a good effort in the second half. The guys didn't quit," Musselman said. "But to shoot that low from the free- throw line, it's going to be difficult to win games in the NBA on the road."

NOTES: Van Exel, who played for Denver from 1998-99 through the middle of the 2001-02 season, was booed virtually every time he touched the ball. "I think they still like me -- that's the only reason they boo me. It's got to be," Van Exel said. ... Musselman praised Sean Lampley before the game, explaining his increased playing time Wednesday came after a series of good practices. But when Lampley failed to get back on defense late in the first quarter, allowing Lenard to hit an open 3-pointer, the ex-Cal star's night was over after 2 minutes. ... Injury-plagued rookie Mickeal Pietrus came in for Lampley but got nothing achieved either and was out after 4 scoreless minutes.