It’s a Nightmare as Nuggets Crush the Lakers

Friday the 13th has a way of playing some ugly tricks on the unsuspecting. And as easily as the Lakers handled Phoenix a night earlier, it was the Denver Nuggets that put the hurt onto the Lakers, 105-79 at the Pepsi Center. Andrew Bynum (19 points, 15 rebounds), was a dominant presence in the middle that the Denver Nuggets did not have to face in last season’s Western Conference Finals. He single-handedly cleaned the boards in the first quarter. And on a night when Kobe Bryant (19 points all in the first half, 3 rebounds, 2 assists), appeared fatigued, Bynum’s play was a welcome respite. The intensity picked up right where these two teams left off last season with physical play, tenacious defense and plain nastiness.

The versatility and depth of the Lakers played a key role in the first half of this contest. Lamar Odom (14 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists), benefitted early, on backdoor cuts and slashes to the basket. His aggressiveness kept the Nuggets on their heels and unable to consistently double-team Kobe in the post. Ron Artest also found himself guarded by smaller players and exploited the Denver defense for 11 first half points to go along with 6 assists. But unfortunately, this strength didn’t resonate down to the rest of the squad, nor to the second half.

Former UCLA standout Aaron Afflalo (8 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist), did a decent defensive job on Kobe, forcing him into some tough, contested shot attempts. But Kobe being Kobe, still managed to score a game leading, 19-points on 7-13 from the field in the first half. That he failed to score another point in the game was bigger news than Denver’s win. The Nuggets scrappiness kept them in the game and eventually forged them into the lead, benefitting from unlikely baskets from Kenyon Martin (10 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists), and rookie Ty Lawson (13 points, 6 assists). And as has been the case in recent matches, Carmelo Anthony found himself in early foul trouble and saw limited playing time. Denver led at halftime 58-56 although it appeared that the Lakers had the game under their control.

Foul trouble to open the 3rd quarter quickly allowed the Nuggets to take a commanding lead. Artest picked up his 5th and shortly thereafter, Odom picked up his 4th foul just as Anthony (25 points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 assists), re-found his shooting touch. And as play intensified, it appeared that all of the calls started going in Denver’s favor. The burly Nuggets were allowed to bully the Lakers, as all of calls swayed in favor of the aggressor. Denver’s lead grew to 87-64 as the Lakers continued to struggle with their poise and had difficulty hanging onto the ball. For the period, Denver dismantled the Lakers 29-8 and the game was all but over.

The 4th period opened with all starters, except for Bynum, planted firmly on the bench. And the Nuggets exploited the slow-to-recover Lakers defense repeatedly down the court for easy spot-ups and layups. Super-sub JR Smith (20 points, 3 rebounds), unleashed a barrage of three pointers as Martin and Chris “Birdman” Anderson (8 points, 11 rebounds), cleaned up every loose carom off the boards. For the first time this season, the absence of Pau Gasol was severely felt. And without having Odom available to anchor the second unit, the Bench Mob was badly outscored by the Nuggets, 43-16.