2-10 Denver 109 Milwaukee 102

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Denver 109 Milwaukee 102

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Carmelo Anthony finally got his All-Star nod. He'll try to live up that status and help the Denver Nuggets win consecutive games when they visit the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday.

Anthony was named to the All-Star team by NBA commissioner David Stern on Friday as an injury replacement, a long-speculated move after the Western Conference coaches snubbed Anthony - who leads the league in scoring with 30.9 points per game - for a reserve role.

He answered the recognition by scoring 34 points to lead Denver to a 102-95 win over Indiana on Friday, snapping the team's three-game losing streak. The injury-ravaged Nuggets (24-24) played without starters Allen Iverson and Marcus Camby. Iverson didn't travel with the team after aggravating his sprained ankle in Wednesday's 114-112 overtime loss to New Orleans, while Camby sat out with a strained left groin.

NBA

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MILWAUKEE, Feb. 10 (AP) -- The Denver Nuggets had an eventful two-game road trip.

They swept both games, Carmelo Anthony was named an All-Star, coach George Karl cracked one liners and the Nuggets saw a bizarre fourth-quarter strategy employed by the desperate Bucks.

Anthony scored 29 points, and Nene had 17 points and 11 rebounds as the Nuggets held on to beat Milwaukee 109-102 on Saturday night to improve to 12-10 away from Denver this season.

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The urgency of the situation has been apparent for some time now for the Milwaukee Bucks. It's just that they respond to it better on some occasions than others.

The Bucks failed to take care of business Saturday night at the Bradley Center, where they rallied in the fourth quarter but then faded in the final 2 minutes and lost to the Denver Nuggets, 109-102, extending their losing streak to eight games against Western Conference teams.

JS Online: Knowing the score won't get points

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ON THE COURT

PLAYER OF THE GAME: One day after leading Denver's victory over Indiana and being named to the Western Conference all-star team, Carmelo Anthony carried the Nuggets with 29 points on 13-of-28 shooting.

Anthony added 10 assists and eight rebounds to nearly pull off a triple-double. "What I saw (Friday against Indiana) was a player who released his stress," Nuggets coach George Karl said. "He got named to the all-star team and now he figures, 'Hey, I can figure this all out.' "

PLAY OF THE GAME: Bucks guard Earl Boykins drove to the baseline and made a short bounce pass to Brian Skinner, who pounded home a dunk with 2:53 left. Nene Hilario fouled Skinner on the play, and Skinner converted the free throw for a three-point play to pull the Bucks within 99-97.

STATISTICS SHEET: Three-point shooting helped the Bucks stay in the game, as they sank 10 of 18 attempts (55.6%) from beyond the arc, including 6 of 7 by Boykins.

JS Online: Saturday game report

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MILWAUKEE - Earl Boykins felt like he was back at practice at the Pepsi Center. He knew all the Nuggets' plays and turned the three-point line into a routine shooting drill.

In the end, it still wasn't enough. Facing Denver for the first time since he was traded to Milwaukee on Jan. 11, Boykins scored 26 points and made a career-high six three-pointers Saturday, only to see the Nuggets celebrate on his new homecourt.

Carmelo Anthony offset Boykins' big night with another well-rounded game, and Denver outscored Milwaukee 7-0 in the final 60 seconds of a 109-102 win at the Bradley Center.

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