The Denver Nuggets fell to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals on Sunday, and for much of the game, it was ugly.
Or in the words of Nuggets interim coach David Adelman, "disgusting."
After Denver lost to OKC 92–87, Adelman referred to the game as a "really disgusting basketball game," per Romi Bean of CBS News Colorado. Though the Nuggets held the lead for a good chunk of the second half, that didn't take away from what was a heavily flawed performance from both teams.
The woes from each team began early in the game as Nuggets scored just a measly eight points during the first quarter of the game. The Thunder were better—scoring 17 points in the first quarter—but far from good. Both teams struggled to hit three-pointers early on, going just a combined 1 for 24 from the three-point range to start the game, and 21 for 86 overall on the day.
Denver shooting inaccuracy was not just limited to the three-point range. They shot 31.3% overall from the field, and were 10 for 25 near the rim, which Adelman deemed unacceptable.
Even when the Nuggets took a lead over the Thunder, Adelman didn't think it was because they were playing great. “We got up eight through pure effort and energy, not necessarily playing well," he said, via Ryan Blackburn.
Adelman did note that he felt both teams were tired after playing a late overtime game on Friday, less than two days before Sunday's early afternoon matchup. Though Adelman wouldn't blame scheduling, he did notice the effects from the short time frame between the two games.
"I will say that I think both teams were very tired coming off an unbelievably physical overtime battle on a late Friday night," Adelman said, via The Denver Post's Bennett Durando. "If it affected us, it surely affected them as well. ... Both of us had super-tired legs. It was about who was gonna make that final run. And when we got up eight, I thought we were making the push. To their credit, they were the ones to make the final run. We made mistakes late."
The series is now tied at 2–2, and Game 5 will take place in Oklahoma City on Tuesday night.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Nuggets Coach Used Brutally Honest Word to Describe Game 4 Loss to Thunder.
