Through 11 games, the Seattle Sonics may not have yet found a sure recipe for success, but they certainly have found one for disaster. Turnovers plus poor perimeter defense plus failing to stop the oppostion from gathering offensive rebounds equals a sure loss, as the Denver Nuggets proved again in the second half while coming from behind to beat the Sonics, 103-93.

That's not to discount the significant contributions to the outcome of the Nuggets' roster, especially guard Nick Van Exel, forced to take a larger role in the offense for Denver this season due to the injury to forward Antonio McDyess. The streaky Van Exel, who has long been a thorn in the Sonics' side, started the third quarter with a three pointer and finished with five and 21 points for the session, abusing Sonic guard Desmond Mason. The Nuggets outscored the Sonics 33-16 in the third, and though the Sonics did threaten in the fourth quarter, cutting the lead as low as four at the 7:09 mark, the Nuggets were able to hold on as the Sonics' outside shooters went ice cold in the final minutes.

The Nuggets jumped out to an early 14-7 lead on the Sonics, but the home team chipped away and eventually took a solid lead of four points after one quarter. Seattle held the lead throughout the second quarter as Van Exel struggled through a rough first half, shooting just 3 of 13. Center Raef LaFrentz, a disappointment thus far this season, had a strong first half for the Nuggets with 15 points. After the half, however, the Nuggets were revitalized and the Sonics demoralized, leading to an easy win.

The Sonics were led in scoring by Rashard Lewis, who finished with 23 points, including 5 of 9 from three point range, along with 10 rebounds. Brent Barry was the Sonics' most effective player on offense, scoring 22 points while shooting 8 of 12 from the field. Gary Payton was stifled by the defense of the Nugget's Tariq Abdul-Wahad and shot 4 of 14, but finished with 16 points thanks to an 8 of 8 performance at the free throw line. Mason had a fine night on the offensive end, scoring a season high 19 points on 7 of 11 shooting. Art Long came off the bench to provide a solid 9 points and 10 boards in 25 minutes. Antonio Harvey started at center for the Sonics. In 9 minutes, he had 2 points and 4 boards ... Jerome James saw limited minutes and was plagued by foul trouble, picking up 3 fouls in 7 minutes ... For the second straight game, Vladimir Radmanovic saw no time in the second half, turning the ball over twice in his 5 minute first half stint ... the Nuggets switched up their lineup, starting unheralded third year man Ryan Bowen at power forward in place of McCloud ... Isaiah Rider sat out for Denver with (Sonics fans can already guess) a sprained ankle ... Calvin Booth is likely to return to action Tuesday night against Dallas.

SC.com Player of the Game: Brent Barry, with 22 points, was the best thing the Sonics had going offensively, but they failed to look to him enough. Sorry, Bones, we know PoG is little consolation..