Billups, Smith step up as Nuggets defeat Lakers

By Dan Arritt, for NBA.com
Posted Saturday February 6, 2010 2:38AM

LOS ANGELES (NBA.com exclusive) - -- Carmelo who?

With the Denver Nuggets missing one the NBA's top scorers, Chauncey Billups and J.R. Smith stepped up their offensive game Friday night and handed the Los Angeles Lakers a 126-113 defeat at Staples Center.

Billups scored a career-high 39 points with the help of a career-best nine 3-pointers, and Smith had 27 points off the bench to help offset the absence of injured Carmelo Anthony.

Anthony, who is tied for the league's top scoring average at 29.7 points, missed his seventh consecutive game with a sprained left ankle.

"Sometimes when you get it going, you feel like you can't miss,"

Billups said. "I feel like I had a couple stretches like that in the game."

The nine 3-pointers by Billups, a 13-year guard who will compete in the 3-point shooting contest during the NBA All-Star weekend Feb 13-14 in Dallas, was the second-most ever by a Lakers' opponent. He attempted 13 for the game.

"I got some good looks," Billups said. "They gave me space to get off my shots."

Billups made four in a row during a game-changing run in the third quarter, when the Nuggets turned a 79-70 deficit with 5:15 remaining into 94-89 lead heading into the fourth. Billups finished with 21 points in the third quarter, the most the Lakers have allowed since Wilt Chamberlain scored 23 during a quarter as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers in 1966.

"Chauncey was huge," said Denver coach George Karl. "He getting in the zone like that, it's a pleasure to be a part of."

Smith, a sixth-year guard who came in averaging 14.7 points a game, then took over in the fourth as Billups sat out the first five minutes. Smith scored 16 points in the final quarter on 7-for-10 shooting. His 3-pointer with one minute left gave the Nuggets a 121-110 lead and sent many in the sellout crowd of 18,997 scurrying for the exits.

"It was just part of the flow," Smith said of the shot.

Billups, who arrived only 60 minutes before tip off due to rainy weather and traffic, was held scoreless in the fourth quarter until his steal and layup with 23 seconds remaining established a new career-high. His previous career-best was 37 points, which he most recently equaled Jan. 20 in an overtime victory against Golden State.

"I'm just glad it didn't happen in a playoff game, that's all,"

said Lakers coach Phil Jackson.

The scoring barrage by Billups and Smith overshadowed a 33-point effort by Kobe Bryant of the Lakers.

Playing on a tender left ankle and with his broken right index finger still heavily wrapped, Bryant appeared set for one of his patented 50-point efforts after scoring 20 points in the first 15 minutes, but he sat out the next five minutes and seemed to lose his shooting touch, converting just 4-for-12 from the field the rest of the way.

"I could still be effective and play," Bryant said of his injuries.

"Obviously, I'm not as explosive as I was, but I can still command double teams, things like that."

As for the Nuggets, the over-the-top contributions didn't end with Billups and Smith.

Chris Andersen grabbed a season-high 15 rebounds off the bench and reserve guard Ty Lawson scored 13 on 5-for-6 shooting. Arron Afflalo contributed 11 points, none bigger than the 3-point basket he sank with 1:49 remaining in the game, pushing Denver's lead back to double digits.

"Afflalo probably make the biggest one," Karl said of the Nuggets'

15 3-pointers.

Jackson said the third-quarter run by the Nuggets was sparked when Bryant was whistled for his third and fourth foul 78 seconds apart.

The referees seemed to call the game tighter after Ron Artest of the Lakers received a technical foul after starting to punch Denver forward Joey Graham and then holding back about 12 inches from making contact.

"We had a nine-point lead in that third quarter and it looked like we were playing pretty well until Kobe got run out of the game with his fourth foul," Jackson said. "That kind of changed the course of the game."

Pau Gasol finished with 17 points and 17 rebounds for the Lakers and Shannon Brown had 13 points off the bench. He again outplayed starting guard Derek Fisher, who was limited to four points and no assists in 24 minutes.

The going won't get any easier for the Lakers tonight when they travel to Portland, where they have lost eight consecutive games.

Bryant had an easy answer for ending that streak.

"Just got up there and get a win," he said.

• Nuggets: Balkman
• Lakers: Morrison

• Nuggets: --
• Lakers: Artest

• Lead Changes: 9
• Times Tied: 6

• Arena: Staples Center, Los Angeles, CA
• Officials: #13 Monty McCutchen, #54 Derrick Collins, #23 Jason Phillips
• Attendance: 18997
• Duration: 2:22