Nuggets 117, Heat 104
Ty Lawson had 24 points and nine assists to guide the Denver Nuggets to a convincing 117-104 victory over the visiting Miami Heat on Friday.
Nene added 17 points and 12 rebounds, and Al Harrington and Rudy Fernandez scored 15 apiece as Denver (8-4) notched its 10th consecutive victory over Miami.
LeBron James scored 35 and Chris Bosh had 17 for the Heat (8-4), who dropped their third straight.
The Nuggets led by five entering the final quarter and began the period with nine straight points, taking a 95-81 on Andre Miller’s put-back with 9:08 remaining. Miami’s deficit grew to 16 before Bosh scored the Heat’s first field goal of the quarter on a dunk with 8:19 to play.
Lawson’s fast-break basket gave Denver a 110-91 lead with 4:03 remaining.
Miami’s Dwyane Wade scored just 12 points before leaving the game in the fourth with an ankle injury.
Danilo Gallinari added 14 points and Timofey Mosgov scored 12 for the Nuggets.
Denver shot 55.1 percent from the field and buried 12 of 25 3-point shots. Fernandez, Gallinari and Harrington each made three 3-pointers.
The Nuggets led by as many as 14 in the first quarter and led 30-21 when it ended. Miami rallied and trailed just 55-53 at halftime.