Denver Nuggets vs Sacramento Kings 106-101

Carmelo Anthony(15) vs Donte Greene (20)

SACRAMENTO, Calif. Andres Nocioni made four 3-pointers and scored a season-high 21 points, helping the Sacramento Kings beat the struggling Denver Nuggets 106-101 on Monday night.Omri Casspi made a 3-pointer from the corner to put the Kings ahead for good at 97-96. Following a missed shot by Carmelo Anthony, Beno Udrih converted on a fastbreak for a three-point play to give Sacramento a 100-96 lead with 1:41 remaining.Udrih scored 17 points and had seven assists and Donte Greene also had 17 points for the Kings. Jason Thompson contributed 15 points and 11 rebounds.Anthony scored 34 points and Nene had 25 points for the Nuggets, who lost their third straight and fifth in six games. Kenyon Martin added 10 points and 12 rebounds.The Nuggets made just 20 of 35 free throws and shot 41 percent overall. Hounded by Kings defenders throughout, Anthony shot 15 of 35 and was 3 of 7 on free throws.The Nuggets are a different team on the road, where they have dropped six straight. They came into the game averaging just over 100 points in road games while averaging 114 in Denver, where they are 13-2.

Los Angeles Lakers vs Sacramento Kings 92-85

Kobe Bryant and Jason Thompson

SACRAMENTO, Calif.  Kobe Bryant scored 38 points and the Los Angeles Lakers bounced back from a humbling Christmas Day loss to Cleveland by beating the Sacramento Kings 112-103 on Saturday night in double overtime.After Lamar Odom opened the second overtime with a putback basket, Bryant connected on a pair of 3-pointers to put the Lakers in front 109-103 with 2:37 left. Los Angeles outscored the Kings 11-2 in the second OT.Beno Udrih scored 23 points for the Kings, who held the Lakers scoreless in the final 3:35 of the fourth quarter to force overtime. Tyreke Evans had 18 points, Donte Greene had 16 and Omri Casspi added 15 points and 10 rebounds.Pau Gasol had 24 points and 11 rebounds for the Lakers, who avoided losing consecutive games for the second time this season. Shannon Brown scored 15 points and Odom had 13 points and 15 rebounds.The Lakers lost 102-87 to Cleveland on Friday before a national TV audience and are in a stretch of four games in five days, concluding Tuesday at home against Golden State. They played without starting forward Ron Artest, who the team said suffered a concussion on Christmas evening, falling while carrying boxes down a flight of stairs and injuring his left elbow at his Los Angeles home.

Artest was treated at UCLA Medical Center, undergoing a CT scan and receiving stitches in the back of his head and his elbow. The team said a neurologist examined Artest on Saturday. He is day to day and didn’t travel with the team on its Saturday flight to Sacramento.The youthful Kings were stagnant on offense late in the first overtime and it carried over into the second, when their only basket was a driving layup by Evans with 3:01 remaining. The Kings lost a game earlier in the week against Cleveland when they were outscored 13-0 in overtime.After the Kings scored the first seven points in the first overtime, they went scoreless over the final 2:40 as the Lakers rallied. Gasol tipped in a missed shot by Derek Fisher from close range, tying the game at 101 with .04 seconds left.

The victory moved the Lakers (24-5) past idle Boston for the best record in the NBA.Seemingly bothered by a sore right arm, Bryant missed all four shots in the fourth quarter, when he began passing and shooting with his left. Yet Bryant did slap the ball away Evans in the closing seconds as the Kings never got a shot off, forcing overtime with a 94-all tie.

Bryant was his usual self offensively, but it was Brown helping the Lakers pull away in the fourth quarter. Brown scored eight points over a two-minute stretch, his three-point play putting Los Angeles ahead 92-85 with 4:23 remaining.An enthusiastic crowd, only the second sellout of the season, loudly booed the Lakers when starting lineups were announced and began chanting “Beat LA!” It was reminiscent of the crowds that cheered the Kings in the Chris Webber era, when Sacramento was typically battling the Lakers for supremacy in the Western Conference.Despite Bryant making his first five shots and scoring 16 points in the third quarter, the Kings would not back down. It took a late 3-pointer and a breakaway dunk by Bryant in the final 1:04 to pull the Lakers even at 78 heading into the fourth.

Udrih capped off a highly productive first half by dribbling past Bryant and hitting a 3-pointer with a second left to give Sacramento a 57-55 lead. Making a rare start, Udrih scored 13 points and Greene had 11 for the Kings. Bryant had 14 points and Gasol added 12 for the Lakers, who shot 55 percent.

NOTES: Greene took an elbow from Andrew Bynum in the second quarter that opened a cut on his chin that required six stitches. Greene returned to start the second half. The teams meet again New Year’s Day in Los Angeles. New York Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia watched the game from courtside seats.

The Cavaliers beat the Pistons 98-88

Cavaliers 98, Pistons 88

In Auburn Hills, Mich., LeBron James scored 12 of his 34 points in the first quarter to help Cleveland build a cushion it used to cruise to a win over Detroit.

Nuggets 124, T-Wolves 111

In Minneapolis, Carmelo Anthony scored 22 points and Nene had 17 points, eight rebounds and six assists as Denver Nuggets handed Minnesota its 14th straight loss.

Pacers 86, Clippers 73

In Indianapolis, Troy Murphy had 18 points and 11 rebounds as Indiana beat Los Angeles to snap a four-game losing streak.

Celtics 113, 76ers 110

In Boston, Rajon Rondo scored six points during a key run early in the fourth quarter and made a shot clock-beating jump shot on the baseline in the closing seconds as the Celtics overcame poor 3-point shooting to beat Philadelphia.

Bobcats 116, Raptors 81

In Charlotte, Gerald Wallace broke out of his shooting slump with 31 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to help the Bobcats to the most lopsided victory in team history, over Toronto.

Heat 99, Magic 98

In Orlando, Michael Beasley dunked a missed shot by Dwyane Wade with 1.6 seconds remaining to lift Miami to a victory over the Magic.

Spurs 118, Warriors 104

In San Antonio, Tony Parker scored 32 points as the Spurs overcame another iron man performance by Monta Ellis in a victory over Golden State.

Ellis tied his career high with 42 points for the Warriors.

Mavericks 130, Rockets 99

In Houston, Jason Kidd moved into second place on the NBA’s career assists list and Jason Terry scored 27 points as Dallas shot 65.5 percent in a victory over the Rockets.

Hornets 102, Bucks 99

In New Orleans, David West had 27 points and 10 rebounds as the Hornets defeated Milwaukee.

Luke Ridnour scored a season-high 23 points for the Bucks.

Suns 126, Grizzlies 111

In Phoenix, Amare Stoudemire scored 18 of his 28 points during a torrid third quarter as the Suns beat Memphis for their 15th consecutive home victory.

Kings 111, Knicks 97

In Sacramento, Donte Greene made six 3-pointers and tied a career high with 24 points, and the Kings never trailed in a victory over New York.