By JON KRAWCZYNSKI
AP Sports Writer

MINNEAPOLIS(AP) -- Soaring through the air for a jaw-dropping,
360-dunk off an alley-oop pass, J.R. Smith showed everyone what
teammate Chauncey Billups already knew - the Denver Nuggets are
so much more than a two-man team.

Even though they held Billups and Carmelo Anthony in check for
much of the game, the Minnesota Timberwolves were still
powerless against a deeper and far more talented opponent.

Billups scored 25 points and got a huge lift from role players
Smith, Chris Andersen and Nene in the Nuggets' 110-102 victory
over the Timberwolves on Wednesday night.

"Sometimes J.R. is going to have it rolling and I can take a
back seat, just facilitate," Billups said. "Sometimes other guys
will be going. That's the beauty of a team."

Andersen had 14 points and 10 rebounds, Nene had 17 points and
nine boards and Smith scored 15 to shake the Nuggets out a
first-half funk and deliver their fourth straight win.

Al Jefferson had 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Timberwolves,
who lost their seventh straight game and 13th in the last 14.
Minnesota has won once since Feb. 6.

"Losing, it weighs on you," said coach Kurt Rambis, whose
Timberwolves lost for the 51st time. "Everybody's frustrated.
This is where you look at people's character and see what they
do. Your options are to roll over or to fight."

Corey Brewer scored 21 points, but the Timberwolves shot 39
percent, which negated a 53-43 advantage on the boards.

Anthony added 19 points, but it was the contributions of his
supporting cast that proved to be the most important for the
short-handed Nuggets.

With coach George Karl watching from home while he undergoes
treatment for neck and throat cancer, the Nuggets started
sluggish against another struggling team and trailed by eight
points with less than eight minutes to play in the third
quarter.

Smith started the comeback for the Nuggets, hitting 3-pointers
on three straight possessions to cut an eight-point deficit to
one in the third quarter. Andersen's two free throws gave the
Nuggets a 70-69 lead, their first since the opening quarter.

Neither Billups nor Anthony even attempted a shot in the first
6:30 of the final period, but thanks to Nene, Andersen and
Smith, the Nuggets added to their lead.

"It was one of those games where we didn't have to shoot too
much in the fourth quarter for us to win the game," Anthony
said. "J.R. had it going, we were spoon-feeding Nene down there.
Games like this are a good time to get Nene and J.R., get the
ball to Aaron (Afflalo), let them get their confidence up."

Smith punctuated the night with his monster dunk, giving Denver
a 12-point lead with 4:25 to go.

"That was one of the most impressive dunks I've ever seen," said
Wolves forward Kevin Love, who had 15 points and 11 rebounds.
"That's just freakishly athletic. Unbelievable."

Karl had surgery on Monday to have a feeding tube inserted into
his stomach and more chemotherapy on Tuesday so assistant Adrian
Dantley filled in for the second time this season. Denver also
continues to play without Kenyon Martin (knee) and Ty Lawson
(shoulder) and have fallen behind the surging Dallas Mavericks
to second place in the West.

Ten of Denver's 21 losses this season have come to teams with a
record below .500, and the Timberwolves were the aggressors
early, leading 23-20 after the first quarter and 53-48 at the
break.

But Love and Jefferson were scratching their heads after the
game at the lack of adjustments by the coaching staff when the
Nuggets went small in the second half. During one stretch, Love,
to everyone's surprise, was guarding Anthony.

"I love Kevin Love, but I don't think he can guard Melo
one-on-one," Jefferson said.

"Not many people can," Love said.

NOTES: The Timberwolves grabbed seven offensive rebounds and 18
overall in the first period. They had only four turnovers in the
first half after 26 turnovers against Dallas on Monday night.
... Wolves C Darko Milicic grabbed 12 rebounds. ... Brewer
extended his franchise record with a 3-pointer in 29 straight
games in the first quarter. It's the third-longest active streak
in the NBA behind Billups (33) and Houston's Aaron Brooks (36).
... In the "Minnesota Nice" department: A fan held a yellow and
blue sign that read: "Get Well Coach Karl."