The Denver Nuggets stunned Philadelphia in their first meeting, and they go for the season sweep when they host the 76ers on Tuesday night.
Denver pulled out an overtime win at Philadelphia on Jan. 5 despite not having its starting five available. The Nuggets have everyone back — minus reserve Peyton Watson — as they continue their push for a top-three seed in the Western Conference.
That goal was dealt a blow with an overtime loss at the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday night, but Denver will play 10 of its final 14 games at home, starting with the Sixers.
Although they are just 18-13 at home, the Nuggets can use the final stretch to improve their seed. They entered Monday fifth but just a few games separate seventh and third place.
The loss in Los Angeles came after Denver allowed Austin Reaves to rebound his intentionally missed free throw and send it to overtime with a layup with 1.9 seconds left, and Luka Doncic won it with a jumper in the final second.
While defensive mistakes contributed to the outcome, Jamal Murray’s tough night was a major factor. Murray, who is having his best scoring season at 25.4 points per game, made his first shot and missed the next 13 before fouling out in overtime.
Murray, who played with a wrap on his right shoulder, finished with just five points.
“I can’t remember a night like this from him,” head coach David Adelman said. “So this is not a normal thing, as everybody knows. So he’ll bounce back.”
Denver hopes to do the same against a Philadelphia team dealing with a rash of injuries. Joel Embiid (oblique), Tyrese Maxey (pinkie) and Kelly Oubre Jr. (elbow) will not play, and Paul George is serving a league suspension, leaving the Sixers without four of their top five scorers.
Embiid has resumed basketball activities but a return date has not been announced. Oubre is expected to miss at least another week with a left elbow sprain suffered against Memphis on March 10 and Maxey will miss at least two more weeks with his injury.
Philadelphia pulled out a scrappy win over Portland on Sunday behind Quentin Grimes (31 points), Justin Edwards (21 points) and VJ Edgecombe (18 points), and a big contribution off the bench by Andre Drummond.
The veteran big man, who pulled down 17 rebounds, is a force underneath. Drummond, who did not play in the first meeting against the Nuggets, missed the previous two games before playing 35 minutes against the Trail Blazers.
“We definitely missed his presence the last couple games when he was out,” Grimes said of Drummond. “You can see how much he impacts the game rebounding-wise and defensively.”
Drummond and Adem Bona are the only players available who are big enough to match up against Denver’s Nikola Jokic, who leads the NBA in rebounding (12.7) and assists (10.5). Teams have played smaller against the Nuggets in the last couple of games, neutralizing the effectiveness of backup center Jonas Valanciunas.
Valanciunas has played a total of just 28 minutes over the last five games.
