(Sports Network) - The Denver Nuggets are beginning to hit their stride
following an 0-3 start to the season and will go for a fourth straight win
Saturday against the Golden State Warriors on the road.
Wins over Detroit, Houston and Utah have evened Denver's mark. In a 104-84
drubbing of the visiting Jazz Friday night at the Pepsi Center, reserve Corey
Brewer scored 13 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter and Kenneth Faried
added 18 points and 10 rebounds for Denver.
"His energy is contagious," Nuggets head coach George Karl said of Faried. "It
is a big part of why we're successful and it is going to have to be a big part
of what we do this year.
Faried has scored 15 or more points in four straight games and is averaging
17.8 ppg and 11.5 rpg in that stretch.
Andre Iguodala tallied 15 points and seven boards, while Kosta Koufos finished
with 15 points and 10 rebounds for Denver, which shot 43.5 percent and
converted 18 Utah turnovers into 23 points. The Jazz were down by as many as
21 points and struggled from beyond the arc, making only 4-of-23 3-pointers.
Timofey Mozgov made his season debut for the Nuggets after missing the first
five games with a left knee strain. He had four points and four rebounds.
The Nuggets had 12 blocks Friday and are 2-0 when swatting that many shots
this season. They were 4-0 when that occurred last season.
Denver, which hasn't won three in a row since closing out last season with
four straight victories, will play two straight and five of its next six games
away from the Rocky Mountains.
Golden State has alternated wins and losses through its first six games and is
coming off Friday's 101-77 setback to the dysfunctional Los Angeles Lakers.
The Lakers announced prior to the game that they fired head coach Mike Brown,
and the team responded by making 40 percent of its shots. Kobe Bryant led the
charge with a game-high 27 points on 10-of-18 shooting.
Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson scored 18 and 15 points, respectively, for the
Warriors, who made only 33.7 percent from the field and their 19 turnovers
were converted to 22 L.A. points. Thompson has scored in double figures in a
career-best 20 games in a row.
"They dominated us on the offensive boards," Warriors coach Mark Jackson said.
"We had too many turnovers. We just didn't take care of the basketball."
David Lee recorded a double-double with 10 points and 12 boards.
The Warriors won two of three meetings with Denver a season ago, but the
Nuggets have taken nine of the last 12 matchups overall.
The Sports Network