LOS ANGELES — It was one of the ugliest games of the young NBA season, with neither the Nuggets nor the Lakers shooting the ball well, from anywhere, for most of the game.
Denver was only 17-of-30 at the free-throw line in regulation Sunday night, and Danilo Gallinari’s missed free throw with 15.1 seconds left kept the score tied 86-86.
The Lakers worked the ball to Kobe Bryant for a shot, and he missed a 20-footer over Wilson Chandler. The Nuggets rebounded the ball with 0.5 left on the shot clock but turned the ball over when inbounding the ball. The Lakers’ Nick Young got off a 30-footer at the buzzer that missed wide left.
Indicative of the teams’ shooting woes: the fourth-quarter statistics. Los Angeles was 4-of-22 in the fourth quarter and the Nuggets were 5-of-21 from the field, with the teams combining for just 25 points.
The Nuggets heated up enough in overtime to get the 101-94 win — with the big shot a 3-pointer by Gallinari, after his missed free throw was rebounded by 7-foot center Timofey Mozgov.
The Nuggets shot only 37.8 percent for the game. The Lakers hit just 37.1 percent.
Footnotes. Nuggets backup forward Darrell Arthur had a strong performance with nine points and three rebounds. … Point guard Ty Lawson is rising among the Nuggets’ career leaders in assists. Heading into Sunday, Lawson ranked fifth with 2,125 assists and needed 57 to pass Michael Adams and move into fourth place. … JaVale McGee left the game in the first quarter after straining his lower left leg. He scored two points and grabbed four rebounds, playing only six minutes.
The Nuggets’ recent success against the Lakers continued. It was Denver’s seventh consecutive victory over L.A.
