Nuggets 121, Kings 93
DENVER - Ty Lawson scored 26 points to lead six players in double figures and the Denver Nuggets routed the Sacramento Kings 121-93 on Saturday night.
Andre Iguodala scored 20 points and Danilo Gallinari had 14 for the Nuggets, who have won three straight.
Denver set a season high for points in a half when it led 71-49 at intermission. The Nuggets' 39 points in the first quarter tied a season high for points in a quarter.
Aaron Brooks scored 16 points off the bench and Tyreke Evans had 15 points for the Kings, who have lost four straight. DeMarcus Cousins, Sacramento's leading scorer, was held to three points and two rebounds and failed to score in double figures for the first time in his last 17 games.
The Nuggets have struggled with strong starts in January but turned that around Saturday. After trailing by one early, they went on a 28-7 run in the first quarter to grab control. They shot 73.9 percent in the period, led by Lawson's 15 points on 3-for-3 shooting from 3-point range.
The Kings hurt themselves with sloppy ball control. They had five turnovers in the first quarter, including two on consecutive possessions that led to layups by Lawson.
Things didn't get better after that. The Kings cut it to 39-28 early in the second quarter but Denver never let the lead get below double digits. The Nuggets stretched it to a 22-point advantage on Iguodala's 3-pointer at the end of the second.
The Nuggets started the third quarter on a 17-6 run to put it away. They led by as many as 35 in the period and took a 101-69 advantage into the fourth quarter.
Denver emptied its bench in the fourth quarter and cruised to its 10th win in the last 13 games.
NOTES: Denver has won 15 of its last 22 against Sacramento and is 13-3 at home against the
Kings since the 2003-04 season. ... DeMarcus Cousins has 20 double-doubles this season and had a streak of six in a row snapped Friday against Oklahoma City. ... Denver started a six-game home streak Saturday that ends Feb. 7, which caps a stretch of 15 of 18 at home. ... The Kings have won four road games this season but three of those have come in January. Coach Keith Smart said the team needs to find a few wins on this current six-game road trip. "We have to try and figure out a way to steal a couple of games out here," he said, "It's very difficult for even good teams on the road. When you have teams like our team trying to find itself on the road and trying to establish itself, the biggest thing is taking care of the basketball. If you can do that, you have a chance."
