The Denver Post's Chris Dempsey revisits three questions raised before Game 5:
1. Can the Nuggets win the battle of the boards again? Yes. The Nuggets won the rebounding battle 43-42 on Wednesday night by sending multiple players to the boards. They had 14 rebounds in the first quarter, including six at the offensive end. The Nuggets got good contributions from a number of players on the glass, led by Chris Andersen and Nene, who each had eight. 2. Will the bench come through on the road? Yes and no. The Nuggets' bench players started strong, with good first-half play. They got contributions from Andersen (blocks and rebounds), Anthony Carter (scoring), Linas Kleiza (scoring and rebounding) and J.R. Smith (scoring, rebounding and defense). Of the Nuggets' 56 first-half points, 19 were scored by reserves. They fizzled a bit in the second half and ended up with 26 points and 19 rebounds.
3. Is the Nuggets' 3-point touch back? That depended on who was shooting. Chauncey Billups got the Nuggets off to a solid start, hitting his first two 3-pointers early in the game. The Nuggets stayed effective from behind the arc, except for Smith, who was 1-for-10, which led to a 7-for-24 team performance.
Chris Dempsey, The Denver Post ------------- BEST OFF THE BENCH
37
The Nuggets' reserves shot
37 percent from the
field (10-of-27).
