NBA

Los Angeles Lakers at Denver Nuggets

· National Basketball Association
40-25, 15-18 Away
Final
126 - 131

43-24, 23-10 Home

Jamal Murray's clutch 3-pointer helps Nuggets hold off short-handed Lakers 131-126

Jamal Murray's go-ahead 3 helps Nuggets top Lakers

Murray finished with 26 points and while the win was something to celebrate, there were enough red flags for coach Michael Malone to crumple up the stat sheet as he sat down for his postgame news conference.

Austin Reaves scored 37 points and Dalton Knecht added 32 for the Lakers, whose lengthy list of injured players included LeBron James and Luka Doncic, who was ruled out on the second night of back-to-back games because of left calf injury management and a right ankle sprain.

James missed his third straight game with a left groin strain and returned to Los Angeles along with Rui Hachimura (left patellar tendinopathy) and Jaxson Hayes (bruised right knee) ahead of the Lakers’ game in Denver. Also, Dorian Finney-Smith and Gabe Vincent sat out to rest left ankle injuries.

James’ son, Bronny, scored five points after being recalled from the G League.

The Lakers lost their fourth straight despite a furious second-half rally that saw them take a 126-123 lead with 52 seconds remaining.

Nikola Jokic, who scored 28, tied it with a three-point play and Reaves misfired from 15 feet before Murray buried the 3 thanks to a screen from Jokic that blocked two defenders.

Takeaways Lakers: Despite feeling under the weather, Bronny James played 16 minutes.

Nuggets: Denver's inability to pull away from a short-handed bunch could be cause for concern for a team jockeying for playoff position.

Key moment The Lakers were about to get blown out but used a 19-9 run to close the third quarter and cut a 13-point deficit to 102-99.

Key stat The Nuggets were 21 of 25 from the free throw line before halftime. The Lakers only shot seven free throws in the first half and made six.

Up next The Lakers host Phoenix on Sunday. The Nuggets host Washington on Saturday night, their fifth game in seven days.

Regular Season Series

DEN leads series 2-1

Matchup Prediction

Nuggets: 88.9%
Lakers: 11.1%
*According to ESPN's Basketball Power Index

Recent Plays

4th 0.0 End of Game 126 - 131
4th 0.0 End of the 4th Quarter 126 - 131
4th 2.1 Russell Westbrook makes 1-foot dunk 126 - 131
4th 4.0 Shake Milton bad pass (Russell Westbrook steals) 126 - 129
4th 5.1 Russell Westbrook enters the game for Jamal Murray 126 - 129

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/lal.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originLAL https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/den.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originDEN
49-105 FG 44-85
46.7 Field Goal % 51.8
15-40 3PT 13-31
37.5 Three Point % 41.9
13-16 FT 30-38
81.3 Free Throw % 78.9
47 Rebounds 39
19 Offensive Rebounds 9
28 Defensive Rebounds 30
32 Assists 30
10 Steals 7
2 Blocks 5
8 Turnovers 12
1 Team Turnovers 0
9 Total Turnovers 12
0 Technical Fouls 0
0 Total Technical Fouls 0
0 Flagrant Fouls 0
13 Points Conceded Off Turnovers 19
15 Fast Break Points 27
62 Points in Paint 58
25 Fouls 15
11 Largest Lead 13

Game Information

Ball Arena

Location: Denver, CO
Attendance: 19,946 · Capacity:

2024-25 Pacific Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
LA Lakers 41 25 .621 - W1
Golden State 39 28 .582 2.5 W7
LA Clippers 38 30 .559 4 W3
Sacramento 33 33 .500 8 L4
Phoenix 31 37 .456 11 L1

2024-25 Northwest Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
Oklahoma City 56 12 .824 - W3
Denver 43 25 .632 13 L1
Minnesota 40 29 .580 16.5 W8
Portland 29 39 .426 27 W1
Utah 15 53 .221 41 L9
Full Standings

NBA News

Utah takes on Chicago, looks to end 9-game slide

Utah takes on Chicago, looks to end 9-game slide

Chicago Bulls (28-39, 10th in the Eastern Conference) vs. Utah Jazz (15-53, 15th in the Western Conference)

Edwards leads Minnesota against Indiana after 41-point game

Edwards leads Minnesota against Indiana after 41-point game

Indiana Pacers (37-29, fifth in the Eastern Conference) vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (40-29, seventh in the Western Conference)

Trail Blazers play the Wizards in cross-conference contest

Trail Blazers play the Wizards in cross-conference contest

Washington Wizards (15-51, 15th in the Eastern Conference) vs. Portland Trail Blazers (29-39, 12th in the Western Conference)

Clippers face the Cavaliers on 3-game win streak

Clippers face the Cavaliers on 3-game win streak

Cleveland Cavaliers (56-11, first in the Eastern Conference) vs. Los Angeles Clippers (38-30, eighth in the Western Conference)

Phoenix hosts Toronto in cross-conference game

Phoenix hosts Toronto in cross-conference game

Toronto Raptors (24-44, 11th in the Eastern Conference) vs. Phoenix Suns (31-37, 11th in the Western Conference)