Kobe Bryant scored 33 points and the Los Angeles Lakers nearly became the first team in three years to hold Carmelo Anthony to single digits in a 104-97 win over the Denver Nuggets on Saturday night. Coming off a two-game suspension, Anthony scored 11 of his 13 points in the fourth quarter. He made two 3-pointers with under a minute left.
Carlos Boozer had 25 points and 10 rebounds for his second double-double of the season, and the Utah Jazz pulled away with a 30-4 run in the second half of a 101-79 victory over the short-handed Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday night. Brevin Knight had six assists in his second game for the Jazz, who set a team record with just five turnovers and improved to 2-0 without point guard Deron Williams,…
Rookie Derrick Rose had his best game, scoring 26 points, and Kirk Hinrich added 18 to lead the Chicago Bulls to a 96-86 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night. Rose, the Chicago native and No. 1 draft pick, scored 10 points in the second quarter to keep the Bulls close enough and kept it going in the second half.
Dirk Nowitzki had 21 points, Jason Terry added 19, and the Dallas Mavericks picked up their first victory of the season, 95-85 over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night. Josh Howard had 14 points for the Mavericks, who have won nine straight over the Timberwolves.