Even with Nene, Danilo Gallinari and Rudy Fernandez all out with injuries, the Denver Nuggets relied on a deep 10-man rotation to race out to a 58-53 half-time lead against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

And while the Thunder's three perimeter stars -- SF Kevin Durant, PG Russell Westbrook and SG James Harden -- scored 40 of Oklahoma City's 53 first-half points, the Nuggets had four different players -- PG Ty Lawson, SG Arron Afflalo, SF Corey Brewer and C Kosta Koufos -- in double digits.

It was a team effort for Denver, as 18 of their 25 field goals came off assists, with veteran PG Andre Miller dishing out 7 off the bench.

The Nuggets got solid minutes from their two first-round picks, PF Kenneth Faried (Morehead State) and SF Jordan Hamilton (Texas), who were were pressed into the rotation due to Denver's numerous injuries.

Oklahoma City, meanwhile, struggled with Durant and Westbrook out of the game, as their reserves were almost run off the court by the Nuggets second unit.