The Denver Nuggets defeated the defending NBA champion Dallas Mavericks, 115-93, to open the season. The Nuggets held a lead of 33 points late in the third quarter, clearly outclassing Dallas for much of the night.
Ty Lawson dominated the Mavericks from start to finish. He had a game-high 27 points (10-for-15), and finished with four rebounds, four assists and three steals to go with the points. Andre Miller came in off the bench and had an impressive return as a Nugget, scoring 18 points on 6-for-8 shooting. He rounded out his game with five rebounds, five assists, three steals and a block.
Al Harrington proved effective off the bench, scoring 12 of his 18 points between the final minutes of the first quarter and the opening minutes of the second.Danilo Gallinari and Arron Afflalo added 15 and 11 points, respectively. Eight of 11 players used in the game played at least 20 minutes, including 30 for Rudy Fernandez and 13 for Corey Brewer.
The Mavericks saw Dirk Nowitzki lead the team with 20 points while the team struggled to reach 42.1 percent from the field. They were outrebounded by the Nuggets, 47-37, as well. Fouls also hurt the Mavericks, sending the Nuggets to the line 34 times (79.4 percent).
The Nuggets return home on Wednesday for a contest against the Utah Jazz at the Pepsi Center.
For a full box score and more, visit our game page.
For more on this game, visit Nuggets blog Denver Stiffs and Mavericks blog Mavs Moneyball. To keep up with the new season, head over to SB Nation NBA.