2012 NBA Playoffs

The Nuggets bench stepped up with Andre Miller scoring 17 of his 24 points in the second half, and Denver escaped a late Los Angeles Lakers surge to stave off elimination with a 102-99 win in Game 5 of this Western Conference first-round series at Staples Center.

With the win the sixth-seeded Nuggets trimmed the third-seeded Lakers' series lead to 3-2.

Mid-season acquisition JaVale McGee came off the bench and made his presence on both ends of the court. The Nuggets reserve center filled the stat sheets with 21 points, 14 boards and two blocks.

Arron Afflalo, tasked to shadow Kobe Bryant in his series, posted a career playoff-high 19 points, and Danilo Gallinari scored 14 for the Nuggets, who had a 15-point lead midway in the fourth before the Lakers rallied.

Bryant, who led the Lakers' offensive onslaught, nailed four triples in the final 4:47 of the tilt and netted 14 of his 43 points in the period, but the L.A. star guard's effort was not enough as the Lakers failed to close out the series.

It was the 13th 40-point game, the fourth most in NBA playoff history, for Bryant, who missed a potential tying triple in the final five seconds.

Ramon Sessions, who finished with nine points and six assists, followed Bryant's attempt also from 3-point range, but missed as time expired.

Sessions, who went 1-for-3 from the 3-point area, trimmed the deficit to 100-99 with 14 seconds left before reserve point guard Miller made two foul shots with 12.8 remaining to put Denver ahead, 102-99.

Andrew Bynum had 16 points and 11 boards for the Lakers, who shot 38.9 percent from the floor and 9-of-24 from beyond the arc.

Denver, which finished with an overall 45.9 percent from the floor and 3-of-19 from the 3-point area, will host Game 6 Thursday.

Prior to this series, both the Nuggets and the Lakers had met in the playoffs on five different occasions ('79, '85, '87, '08, '09) with Los Angeles advancing each time.

 

 

Nuggets Fend Off Late Lakers Surge to Force Game 6