It was another down-to-the-wire game for the Los Angeles Lakers; unfortunately, they ended up on the short end of Game 2 as the Denver Nuggets prevailed with a 106-103 victory over the Southern Californian NBA club. With this victory, Denver tied the series at one game apiece.

“It’s going to be a long series,” said Nuggets coach George Karl. “There was just a demand that we had to win this game. There was an inner spirit. We’re a much more smart, mentally tough team than you look at last year and what we are now. It’s a great win.”

Carmelo Anthony scored 34 points for Denver while Chauncey Billups added 27, two of which came from this play at the end of the first half:

Kobe Bryant finished the night with 32 points and 5 rebounds, but it was not enough to prevent Denver from beating the Lakers for the first time since 1985; since then, the Lakers had defeated the Nuggets in eleven consecutive playoff games.