DENVER -- — Jamal Murray sank a 3-pointer with 5.6 seconds left and Russell Westbrook stole the inbounds pass for a exclamation-point dunk as the Denver Nuggets rebuffed the scrappy, short-handed Los Angeles Lakers 131-126 on Friday night.

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.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Play By Play

Recent plays and game events

TIME	PLAY
12:00	Alex Len vs. Nikola Jokic (Jordan Goodwin gains possession)	0	0
11:39	Jordan Goodwin misses 11-foot two point shot	0	0
11:37	Nikola Jokic defensive rebound	0	0
11:31	Jamal Murray makes 2-foot two point shot (Christian Braun assists)	2	0
11:22	Austin Reaves makes 26-foot three pointer	2	3
11:05	Jamal Murray misses 26-foot three point jumper	2	3
11:03	Austin Reaves defensive rebound	2	3
10:56	Austin Reaves misses driving floating jump shot	2	3
10:53	Alex Len offensive rebound	2	3
10:47	Dalton Knecht misses 12-foot pullup jump shot	2	3
10:45	Alex Len offensive rebound	2	3
10:43	Dalton Knecht misses two point shot	2	3
10:39	Christian Braun defensive rebound	2	3
10:34	Jamal Murray lost ball turnover (Austin Reaves steals)	2	3
10:29	Nikola Jokic blocks Austin Reaves 's 4-foot two point shot	2	3
10:29	Nuggets defensive team rebound	2	3
10:10	Nikola Jokic misses 25-foot three point jumper	2	3
10:07	Alex Len defensive rebound	2	3
9:59	Austin Reaves makes driving layup	2	5
9:39	Michael Porter Jr. misses driving floating jump shot	2	5
9:39	Austin Reaves defensive rebound	2	5
9:28	Jarred Vanderbilt makes 24-foot three point jumper (Dalton Knecht assists)	2	8
9:12	Aaron Gordon makes 24-foot three point jumper (Christian Braun assists)	5	8
8:54	Austin Reaves misses two point shot	5	8
8:52	Alex Len offensive rebound	5	8
8:50	Austin Reaves misses 22-foot three point jumper	5	8
8:50	Aaron Gordon defensive rebound	5	8
8:38	Aaron Gordon misses 24-foot three point jumper	5	8
8:34	Jarred Vanderbilt defensive rebound	5	8
8:28	Dalton Knecht misses 23-foot three point jumper	5	8
8:22	Jordan Goodwin offensive rebound	5	8
8:22	Jordan Goodwin makes 8-foot driving floating jump shot	5	10
8:22	Nuggets Full timeout	5	10
8:07	Aaron Gordon makes 2-foot dunk (Jamal Murray assists)	7	10
7:52	Jarred Vanderbilt makes 1-foot driving dunk (Austin Reaves assists)	7	12
7:34	Nikola Jokic makes two point shot (Jamal Murray assists)	9	12
7:24	Austin Reaves bad pass (Nikola Jokic steals)	9	12
7:24	Alex Len transition take foul	9	12
7:24	Jamal Murray makes free throw 1 of 1	10	12
7:24	Christian Koloko enters the game for Alex Len	10	12
7:16	Christian Koloko shooting foul	10	12
7:16	Aaron Gordon misses free throw 1 of 2	10	12
7:16	Nuggets offensive team rebound	10	12
7:16	Aaron Gordon makes free throw 2 of 2	11	12
7:05	Christian Koloko misses layup	11	12
7:05	Lakers offensive team rebound	11	12
6:58	Austin Reaves makes 18-foot pullup jump shot (Jarred Vanderbilt assists)	11	14
6:42	Nikola Jokic out of bounds bad pass turnover	11	14
6:25	Dalton Knecht makes 24-foot three point jumper (Austin Reaves assists)	11	17
6:13	Jamal Murray misses 23-foot three point step back jumpshot	11	17
6:12	Nikola Jokic offensive rebound	11	17
6:11	Nikola Jokic makes two point shot	13	17
5:57	Dalton Knecht makes layup (Austin Reaves assists)	13	19
5:49	Christian Koloko shooting foul	13	19
5:49	Aaron Gordon makes free throw 1 of 2	14	19
5:49	Russell Westbrook enters the game for Michael Porter Jr.	14	19
5:49	Shake Milton enters the game for Jarred Vanderbilt	14	19
5:49	Markieff Morris enters the game for Jordan Goodwin	14	19
5:49	Aaron Gordon makes free throw 2 of 2	15	19
5:36	Dalton Knecht misses 22-foot three point jumper	15	19
5:33	Aaron Gordon defensive rebound	15	19
5:27	Nikola Jokic misses 2-foot two point shot	15	19
5:25	Christian Koloko defensive rebound	15	19
5:17	Nikola Jokic personal foul	15	19
5:07	Dalton Knecht makes two point shot (Austin Reaves assists)	15	21
4:53	Christian Braun makes 23-foot three point jumper (Nikola Jokic assists)	18	21
4:34	Austin Reaves bad pass (Nikola Jokic steals)	18	21
4:30	Russell Westbrook makes 1-foot dunk (Christian Braun assists)	20	21
4:29	Lakers Full timeout	20	21
4:29	Zeke Nnaji enters the game for Aaron Gordon	20	21
4:13	Austin Reaves makes 2-foot two point shot (Christian Koloko assists)	20	23
3:57	Jamal Murray misses 25-foot three point jumper	20	23
3:56	Nuggets offensive team rebound	20	23
3:56	Bronny James enters the game for Dalton Knecht	20	23
3:50	Nikola Jokic misses driving floating jump shot	20	23
3:49	Markieff Morris defensive rebound	20	23
3:41	Christian Koloko makes alley oop layup (Markieff Morris assists)	20	25
3:29	Christian Braun makes layup (Russell Westbrook assists)	22	25
3:12	Christian Koloko makes layup (Austin Reaves assists)	22	27
3:03	Nikola Jokic misses 25-foot three point pullup jump shot	22	27
3:00	Austin Reaves defensive rebound	22	27
2:55	Austin Reaves misses two point shot	22	27
2:53	Christian Braun defensive rebound	22	27
2:47	Jamal Murray misses driving floating jump shot	22	27
2:47	Shake Milton defensive rebound	22	27
2:40	Shake Milton makes two point shot	22	29
2:40	Nuggets Full timeout	22	29
2:40	Peyton Watson enters the game for Christian Braun	22	29
2:40	Jalen Pickett enters the game for Jamal Murray	22	29
2:29	Nikola Jokic makes 17-foot jumper	24	29
2:12	Markieff Morris misses 22-foot three point jumper	24	29
2:09	Christian Koloko offensive rebound	24	29
2:09	Christian Koloko misses tip shot	24	29
2:09	Bronny James offensive rebound	24	29
2:09	Jalen Pickett shooting foul	24	29
2:09	Bronny James makes free throw 1 of 2	24	30
2:09	Alex Len enters the game for Christian Koloko	24	30
2:09	Bronny James makes free throw 2 of 2	24	31
1:59	Nikola Jokic makes 7-foot two point shot	26	31
1:59	Markieff Morris shooting foul	26	31
1:59	Nikola Jokic misses free throw 1 of 1	26	31
1:57	Austin Reaves defensive rebound	26	31
1:39	Shake Milton makes 23-foot three point jumper (Austin Reaves assists)	26	34
1:25	Russell Westbrook makes 25-foot three pointer	29	34
1:16	Bronny James makes 23-foot three point jumper (Austin Reaves assists)	29	37
1:05	Nikola Jokic misses 23-foot three point jumper	29	37
1:03	Austin Reaves defensive rebound	29	37
50.1	Austin Reaves makes 25-foot three pointer	29	40
43.1	Russell Westbrook makes 10-foot pullup jump shot	31	40
30.0	Markieff Morris misses 13-foot pullup jump shot	31	40
27.1	Nuggets defensive team rebound	31	40
27.1	Alex Len loose ball foul	31	40
27.1	Peyton Watson makes free throw 1 of 2	32	40
27.1	Aaron Gordon enters the game for Nikola Jokic	32	40
27.1	Christian Braun enters the game for Jalen Pickett	32	40
27.1	Peyton Watson misses free throw 2 of 2	32	40
25.1	Markieff Morris defensive rebound	32	40
5.1	Austin Reaves misses two point shot	32	40
3.1	Alex Len offensive rebound	32	40
3.1	Alex Len misses tip shot	32	40
3.1	Nuggets defensive team rebound	32	40
0.1	Russell Westbrook misses two point shot	32	40
0.0	Nuggets offensive team rebound	32	40
0.0	End of the 1st Quarter	32	40

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Game Information

Time, Location & Referees

Venue

Ball Arena

Denver, CO

Date & Time

1:30 AM, March 15, 2025

Coverage

NBA TV, Spectrum Sports Net, Altitude Sports

Attendance

19,946

Referees

Jason Goldenberg, Ben Taylor, Sha'Rae Mitchell

2025-26 Pacific Standings

TEAM	W	L	PCT	STRK
LA Lakers	35	24	.593	W1
Phoenix	34	26	.567	W1
Golden State	31	29	.517	L1
LA Clippers	27	31	.466	L3
Sacramento	14	47	.230	W1

2025-26 Northwest Standings

TEAM	W	L	PCT	STRK
Oklahoma City	46	15	.754	W1
Denver	37	23	.617	L1
Minnesota	37	23	.617	W2
Portland	29	32	.475	L1
Utah	18	42	.300	L5

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

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