Boykins helps Nuggets overcome suspensions, down Wizards

Basketball Betting Lines

12/19/2006 - Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Despite having their top two scorers suspended until January, the Denver Nuggets used a big first quarter and 29 points from Earl Boykins, on the way to a 117-108 win over the Washington Wizards.

Boykins, who went 14-of-15 from the foul line, wasn't the only player with a big offensive performance for the Nuggets, winners of two straight. Andre Miller had 27 points and Marcus Camby was dominant inside with 25 points, 17 rebounds and seven blocked shots.

Denver will play deep into January without the league's leading scorer, as Carmelo Anthony was hit with a 15-game suspension in the wake of Saturday night's ugly brawl in the fourth quarter of the Nuggets' 123-100 victory over the Knicks at Madison Square Garden.

Three of the seven players suspended were from the Nuggets. J.R. Smith, who was taken down on a breakaway layup attempt, was hit with a 10-game suspension and Nene was suspended one game for leaving the bench during the altercation.

Anthony and Smith are the Nuggets' top two scorers, combining to average better than 48 points per game.

"Like I said this morning, guys are going to have to step up," Camby said. "We're missing like 50 points with J.R. and Carmelo. A lot of people probably thought we were going to fall flat when you miss a key component like Carmelo Anthony."

Commissioner David Stern levied a fine of $500,000 against each team, but neither coach was suspended.

Nuggets coach George Karl unleashed a verbal tirade at Knicks coach Isiah Thomas on Monday. Thomas told Anthony not to go into the lane late in the fourth quarter with the Nuggets holding an insurmountable lead. Karl noted that Thomas' actions were premeditated, but despite the brawl, neither coach was suspended.

"In general, I think you saw a team that played with a lot of heart," Karl said after Monday's win. "I'm really proud to be a Denver Nugget tonight."

Caron Butler had 26 points, 10 rebounds and six assists for Washington, which was coming off Sunday night's 147-141 road overtime win over the Lakers. Gilbert Arenas, who had a franchise-record 60 points in that game, ended with 23 points, eight boards and seven assists against the Nuggets, but shot just 10-of-30 from the field.

The Nuggets led by 20 after one quarter, but the Wizards hung tough and fought back to get within two at 93-91 with under six minutes left following a basket from Arenas. However, Denver scored the next nine points, with Boykins' three capping the spurt, and the Wizards didn't threaten the rest of the way.

"We just wanted to come out and be aggressive tonight, because we knew they played last night," Miller said. "It's tough when your big guns are out, but this is a chance for some guys to step up."

Linas Kleiza had 10 points for Denver, which went 34-of-44 from the foul line.

Antawn Jamison had 21 points and nine boards for Washington.

The Nuggets scored the first six points and led 36-16 after 12 minutes. It was 65-43 at the half and 85-73 going into the fourth.

"Obviously the first quarter was the story tonight," Washington coach Eddie Jordan said. "We knew they would come out emotionally charged, and we were emotionally spent. I give my guys credit because we came back and worked hard, but Denver just made shots when they needed to."

Game Notes

Anthony isn't eligible to return for the Nuggets until a January 20 game at Houston...DeShawn Stevenson had 16 points for Washington.

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Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

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