Denver Nuggets lose 8th straight game to the Philadephia 76ers

Jan 1, 2014; Denver, CO, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Spencer Hawes (00) keeps the ball from Denver Nuggets guard Ty Lawson (3) and forward Wilson Chandler (21) in the fourth quarter at Pepsi Center. Philadelphia won 114-102. Mandatory Credit: Byron Hetzler-USA TODAY Sports

The Denver Nuggets lost their 8th straight game Wednesday night to the Philadelphia 76ers, 114-102. Denver would lead Philly 30-26 at the end of the first quarter, but would be outscored in the second quarter 44-26.

Evan Turner would be the Sixers MVP of the night, scoring a game-high 23 points on 8-of-17 shooting, adding 5 rebounds and 6 assists; plus/minus rating of +11. His rookie teammate Michael Carter-Williams would set the table for him, scoring 16 points on a shakyy 5-of-15 shooting, but would record 9 rebounds and 6 assists from the point-guard position. Lavoy Allen was a surprise x-factor for this Philadelphia club, scoring a season-high 13 points in just 16 minutes of game-time. Allen would also shoot 6-of-9 from the field including a rare three-pointer.

Philadelphia would shoot 43-0f-92 from the field, 46.7% percent while Denver struggled from the field, shooting 36-of-91 from the field, 39.6% percent. Nuggets point-guard Ty Lawson struggled from the field, going 4-of-13 while shooting 1-of-5 from behind-the-arc. Lawson would finish with 15 points however, scoring 6 of his 15 at the charity stripe.Wilson Chandler chipped in a solid night, scoring 16 points on 5-of-13 shooting, knocking down four three-pointers. Chandler would also collect 7 rebounds and 3 steals. J.J. Hickson had a couple of huge dunks in the game while he collected a quite double-double, scoring 19 points on 7-of-14 shooting with 11 rebounds and 2 blocks.

Nuggets shooting guard Randy Foye would earn his starting spot after going through a shooting slump, sending Jordan Hamilton back to coming off of the bench after starting three games. Foye would play well, scoring 14 points from the field, but shot 6-for-17.

Denver’s bench was shaky yet again, going a combined 8-of-23 from the field, as Evan Founier would connect for 3-of-6 shooting. Fournier finished with 14 minutes of action, scoring 7 points while adding 2 rebounds. The Denver Nuggets have lost eight-in-a-row, including five-games on their home court in which they only lost three games on last season. Here is what Nuggets power forward/center J.J. Hickson had to say about the loss:

"“I feel like we have reached rock bottom,” said J.J. Hickson, who had 19 points and 11 rebounds. “We’ve lost to some pretty bad teams.”"

Here is head coach Brian Shaw‘s take on the teams play of late:

"“It’s not even a slump right now, it’s worse than a slump,” Shaw said. “Players are coming in and having their way with us. We’re not making them uncomfortable, they’re shooting the ball with a high percentage from the 3-point line, we’re giving up offensive rebounds. We’re allowing penetration."

The Denver Nuggets (14-17) are back in action Friday night as they host the Memphis Grizzlies. Tip-off is scheduled for 9:00 PM ET, 7:00 PM MT.