National Basketball Association
Denver 119, L.A. Lakers 101
When: 9:00 PM ET, Wednesday, April 8, 2015
Where: Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado
Officials:
#56 Mark Ayotte, #20 Leroy Richardson, #12 Violet Palmer
Attendance:
13338
By The Sports Xchange
DENVER -- Forward Kenneth Faried had a season-high 29 points and also grabbed 11 rebounds and the Denver Nuggets used a big second half to pull away and beat the Los Angeles Lakers 119-101 on Wednesday night.
Forward Danilo Gallinari scored 27 points and guard Ty Lawson had 16 in his return from a one-game absence to help the Nuggets clinch the season series with the Lakers.
Guard Jordan Clarkson had 21 points and forward Ryan Kelly scored 17 points for the Lakers, who have lost five straight.
While other games had playoff implications, the Lakers and Nuggets were battling for lottery balls. Both teams are headed there for the second straight season, and the Lakers came into the night with the fourth-worst record in the NBA.
The Nuggets own the seventh but moved within a half-game of Detroit with Wednesday's win that ended a four-game losing streak.
Denver took advantage of a Lakers team that was playing its fifth game in eight days and on the second consecutive night. Los Angeles suffered a nail-biting loss to the Clippers on Tuesday but stayed with the Nuggets until the legs gave out in the third quarter.
Kelly gave L.A. a 61-58 lead early in the period but then it was all Nuggets the rest of the quarter. Faried scored six points and guard Randy Foye and Gallinari each hit a pair of 3-pointers to spark a 20-2 Denver run.
Faried finished the quarter with a dunk and two layups as the Nuggets went up 93-69.
He scored four quick points to start the fourth before leaving with Denver ahead by 20.
Denver looked like it would run away from L.A. early. The Nuggets grabbed a 13-3 lead and were up 27-13 late in the first before the Lakers came back to grab a 45-41 edge midway through the second quarter. Gallinari finished the half by scoring eight of Denver's last nine points to give the Nuggets a 58-54 lead at the break.
NOTES: Nuggets G Jameer Nelson (right hip flexor strain) did not play. He was injured in Saturday's loss to the Clippers. In addition, F Darrell Arthur missed his seventh consecutive game with a right calf strain. It is likely he will not play the rest of the season, but no official decision has been made. ... Lakers G Wayne Ellington missed his fourth straight game with a right shoulder separation. ... Former Nuggets G Fat Lever was honored by the team at halftime. Lever averaged 17 points, 7.6 rebounds and 7.5 assists from 1984-90 with Denver. ... The Lakers have one more back-to-back, Sunday and Monday against Dallas and Sacramento.
Top Game Performances
| L.A. Lakers |
|
Denver |
|
Jordan Clarkson 21 |
Scoring |
Kenneth Faried 29 |
|
Jordan Clarkson 9 |
Assists |
Ty Lawson 8 |
|
Ed Davis 12 |
Rebounds |
Kenneth Faried 11 |
|
Jordan Clarkson 7 |
Free Throws Made |
Kenneth Faried 9 |
|
Jordan Clarkson 2 |
Steals |
Will Barton 2 |
|
Ryan Kelly 2 |
Blocks |
Kenneth Faried 2 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| L.A. Lakers
|
101 |
48.0 |
5-16 |
24-35 |
15 |
39 |
2 |
7 |
15 |
| Denver
|
119 |
50.0 |
13-30 |
18-24 |
26 |
45 |
6 |
7 |
9 |
Upcoming Games
-
Denver will play their next game at home against Dallas. The Nuggets have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .300 after a loss.
-
L.A. Lakers will play their next game at home against Minnesota. The Lakers have a W/L % of .300 after a win and .241 after a loss.
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