The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Denver Nuggets, 105-96, at Pepsi Center on Tuesday night.

The Lakers (18-3) came into the contest looking to bounce back from a rare defeat, and they got off to a strong start in that regard by building a 60-49 halftime lead. However, the home-court Nuggets (13-5) were more competitive coming out of intermission and managed to shave three points off their deficit during the third quarter. Ultimately, Denver would get as close as 97-96 with 2:23 remaining before Los Angeles finished the game on an 8-0 run.

LeBron James and Anthony Davis paced the Lakers with matching 25-point efforts, with James adding nine assists and six rebounds and Davis pulling down 10 boards. Dwight Howard furnished 13 points, six boards and two blocks. Rajon Rondo delivered 11 points, six points, six assists and one steal.

Jamal Murray led the Nuggets with 22 points, which he supplemented with five rebounds, five assists, two steals and one block. Paul Millsap produced 21 points, eight boards, two assists, one steal and one block. Nikola Jokic tallied 13 points, eight assists, five rebounds and three steals. Gary Harris poured in nine points.

The Lakers remain on the road and face the Utah Jazz on Wednesday night, while the Nuggets travel to the Big Apple and tangle with the New York Knicks on Thursday night.