LOS ANGELES — — Nikola Jokic scored 34 points and Michael Porter Jr. added 24 as the Denver Nuggets used a strong second half to beat the Los Angeles Lakers 127-102 on Saturday night.

Russell Westbrook had 14 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds for Denver against his former team.

Austin Reaves scored 19 points and LeBron James added 18 for the Lakers, who lost consecutive home games after starting 7-0 at home. Rui Hachimura, back in the starting lineup after missing the previous five games with a sprained left ankle, scored 10 points in 22 minutes.

It was the first meeting between the teams since the Nuggets defeated the Lakers in the first round of the playoffs earlier this year. Denver also beat them in the Western Conference finals last year.

Denver trailed by six points at halftime but outscored Los Angeles 37-15 in the third quarter and 70-39 in the second half while dominating both inside and outside.

Takeaways

Lakers: The Lakers led 63-57 at halftime and let the game slip away in a lackluster third quarter. It shows that they still have a lot of work to do to get out of Denver’s control.

Nuggets: Even playing on the second of a back-to-back and traveling, Denver still had the legs for long-range shots. Denver was 16 for 32 on three-pointers.

Key moment

Westbrook had a dip back dunk late in the third quarter to put the finishing touches on an authoritative quarter and extend the lead to 94-77. Westbrook then emphatically twirled his arms in celebration as he ran across the floor again.

Key stat

The Nuggets outscored the Lakers 20-4 in the paint in the third quarter. Jokic had nine points in the crucial third as Denver scored 37 points.

Next

Nuggets host the New York Knicks on Monday and Lakers visit Phoenix to open a back-to-back road.

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