Sonics visit struggling Nuggets

Denver has dropped six of 10 and nine of its last 14 games overall to fall a half-game behind Utah for the final slot in the West. The Nuggets are locked in a tie with Portland for the ninth spot after falling 85-83 to Utah on Saturday.

Carmelo Anthony poured in a game-high 25 points and grabbed eight rebounds for the Nuggets, who lost on the road for the fifth straight contest. Rodney White added 14 points and Earl Boykins chipped in 13 points in the defeat.

The Nuggets were missing sharpshooter Voshon Lenard, who sat out with a left rib cage contusion. Lenard is expected to miss his third straight game due to the injury tonight.

Denver is trying to become the first team in NBA history to reach the postseason after winning less than 20 games the previous year.

The Nuggets have won three straight home games on the heels of three consecutive home defeats. For the season, Denver has posted a 25-12 record at the Pepsi Center.

Seattle saw its seven-game win streak come to an end on Saturday, falling 115-108 in overtime to the Portland Trail Blazers at the Rose Garden.

Ray Allen scored a game-high 32 points with nine rebounds for the SuperSonics, who are 3 1/2 games adrift of the final playoff spot in the West. Rashard Lewis added 24 points in the loss, and Ronald Murray scored 19 off the bench.

Seattle’s loss was its first on the road in five games and it slipped to 15-21 away from home this season.

On the injury front, guard Brent Barry played despite injuring his hip in Friday’s victory over the Nuggets. However, center Jerome James continues to be troubled with an abdominal strain and is listed as day-to-day.

Seattle has won the last two meetings between these teams, including last Friday’s 102-86 win at KeyArena. The home team has won 11 of the last 17 meetings in this series. However, Seattle has won three straight trips to Denver.