Nuggets hold off Lakers

Jamal Murray had 28 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds and made two late 3-pointers to halt a Lakers charge, helping the Denver Nuggets to a 114-106 victory Tuesday night that cut Los Angeles’ lead to 2-1 in the Western Conference finals.

The Nuggets lost almost all of a 20point lead in the fourth quarter but held on to win, avoiding a 3-0 hole that would have been daunting even for this never-out-of-it team.

Denver has set a record by erasing two 3-1 deficits in this post-season, but no NBA team has ever come back from 3-0.

Jerami Grant added a playoff careerhigh 26 points and Nikola Jokic had 22 points and 10 rebounds for the Nuggets, who will try to even the series in Game 4 on Thursday.

LeBron James had 30 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds for the Lakers, who remained two wins from their first NBA Finals appearance in a decade. Anthony Davis, who made the winning 3-pointer at the buzzer in Game 2, scored 27 points.

Associated Press photo Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James (23) works to maintain control of the ball as Denver Nuggets’ Jamal Murray defends during the first half of Game 3 of the NBA basketball Western Conference final Tuesday in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.