Fall behind early. Make a run to try to keep things interesting. Run out of a gas at the end.

The Indiana Pacers aren’t good enough to fall behind by double digits and expect to come back and win, especially against a team that reached the Western Conference finals last season.

They found that out Tuesday night when the Denver Nuggets toyed with them for most of their 111-93 victory over Indiana at Conseco Fieldhouse.

The Pacers (0-3), who play the New York Knicks tonight, are one of three remaining winless teams (New Jersey, Golden State).

“We’ve got to find a way to get a win,” Pacers coach Jim O’Brien said. “The first quarter we didn’t make shots that we’ve made the last couple of years. You can’t shoot poorly and dig yourself out of a 20-point hole in the first quarter.”

It’s hard for the Pacers to win when their offense is doing more idling than running.

They’re averaging 88 points and shooting 38 percent, including 7-of-45 on 3-pointers, from the field in the past two games.

“We have to make sure we stick together,” said Pacers guard Dahntay Jones, who was one of the few bright spots. “We can’t get frustrated or overwhelmed about the situation. It’s just three games; it happens over a course of a season.”

A slow start did in the Pacers for the second straight game. They shot 22 percent from the field and trailed by as many as 19 points in the first quarter.

While the Pacers struggled putting the ball in the basket, the Nuggets, playing the first on a six-game trip, had center Nene scoring in the post and point guard Chauncey Billups getting open looks on the perimeter during their 30-point first quarter.

Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony led all scorers with 25 points and Billups added 24.

“It’s tough; we’re trying our hardest,” Pacers point guard T.J. Ford said. “It’s tough because there are so many guys in here that are struggling. I think that’s what is making it difficult.”

A bruised lower back to Troy Murphy left the Pacers shorthanded in the second half. The lack of depth in the frontcourt forced O’Brien to go with a small lineup that included Danny Granger playing power forward.

It was that lineup, which also featured Ford, Brandon Rush, Dahntay Jones and Roy Hibbert, that made things interesting for a while.

The Pacers, who trailed by as many as 21 points in the first half, got within 59-50 on a Jones layup early in the third quarter.

Jones led the Pacers with 20 points. Hibbert had 14 points and 12 rebounds for his first career double-double and Granger added 18 points on 6-of-16 shooting.

The Pacers had a chance to get to within seven, but Granger was called for traveling and Ford committed a turnover two possessions later. They didn’t get any closer than 11 points the rest of the game.

“I think small is good because Danny can guard most power forwards,” O’Brien said. “but we did not have the depth to sustain when we got to within 10 points.”

The Pacers had 14 turnovers, including seven in the third quarter, and they continued their fouling trend, as the Nuggets attempted 41 free throws.