Lakers 79 - 90 Nuggets
Final
  for this game

Well-rested Lakers hit the road against Nuggets

Feb 27, 2009 - 11:20 AM LA Lakers (48-10) at Denver (38-20) 9:00 p.m. EST

DENVER (Ticker) -- The Los Angeles Lakers' starters received plenty of rest during their latest victory. That's bad news for the struggling Denver Nuggets.

The Lakers go for their seventh straight victory on Friday when they open a two-game road trip against the Denver Nuggets.

Kobe Bryant scored 13 of his 22 points in the first quarter on Thursday, powering Los Angeles to an early lead, which they did not relinquish.

The Phoenix Suns moved ahead in the opening minutes, but behind Bryant, the Lakers closed the session on a 22-6 run en route to a 13-point lead after the opening 12 minutes. Los Angeles never looked back, cruising to a 132-106 victory.

Bryant departed with 57 seconds remaining in the third quarter and the rest of the starters followed suit to start the fourth as Los Angeles' reserves pushed the lead to as many as 28 points in the fourth quarter.

Countering the Lakers' depth will be tough for the Nuggets, who snapped a three-game slide by escaping with a 110-109 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday.

Leading by one point in the closing seconds, Chauncey Billups worked the shot clock down but misfired from 18 feet. The Hawks got the defensive board and rushed up the court for a potential game-winning shot. Joe Johnson neglected a decent chance in the paint, passing to Flip Murray, who threw up an off-balance floater that hit the front of the rim as Denver survived.






Related News