The Los Angeles Lakers moved to their best start to an NBA season for seven years with a 104-90 win over the Denver Nuggets on Friday. Kobe Bryant scored 11 of his 29 points in the third quarter before sitting out the fourth and Andrew Bynum finished with 13 points and 13 rebounds. The defending Western Conference champion Lakers are off to their best start through 11 games since the 2001-02 championship season, when they won 16 of their first 17. Celtics 95, Timberwolves 78: In Minneapolis, Kevin Garnett scored 17 points for Boston in his first game back at his old team Minnesota. The Celtics outscored Minnesota 35-10 in the third quarter, with Garnett putting away two alley-oop passes and throwing down two more dunks to the delight of fans wearing his No. 5 Celtics jersey and still more sporting his old blue No. 21. Garnett was injured in Boston's only game here last season., keeping him from playing in the arena he called home for 12 seasons. Magic 100, Pacers 98, OT: In Indianapolis, Dwight Howard had 24 points, 17 rebounds and five blocks as Orlando pipped Indiana in overtime. Howard blocked a potential game-winning shot at the end of regulation time, and then helped prevent what would have been a game-tying shot in the closing seconds of overtime. Rashard Lewis made what turned out to be the game-winning basket with 23 seconds left in overtime. Spurs 119, Jazz 94: In San Antonio, the home team landed 15 three-pointers in cruising past Utah. Roger Mason scored 29 points for the Spurs, who managed to hit eight of their first nine 3-point attempts despite missing their regular backcourt of Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili. Trail Blazers 117, Kings 94: In Sacramento, California, Portland pulled away in the third quarter to trounce Sacramento. Steve Blake made six 3-pointers and scored 20 points for the Blazers who scored the final 10 points of the third quarter to open a 94-69 lead that was never cut below 20 in the fourth. Bucks 104, Knicks 87: In Milwaukee, the home team broke a three-game losing trot with a comfortable win over New York. Milwaukee's Charlie Villanueva tied a season high with 20 points in his return from injury. The Knicks had a league-minimum eight players after trading away three players in a pair of deals earlier Friday. Out the door went New York's top two scorers, Zach Randolph and Jamal Crawford, along with guard Mardy Collins. Bulls 115, Warriors 110: In Oakland, California, Larry Hughes made five 3-pointers and finished with 26 points as Chicago beat Golden State. Chicago rookie Derrick Rose scored 23 of his 25 points in the second half for the Bulls, who won for the first time on their demanding seven-game road trip stretching across the country. Hughes kept Chicago in a fast-paced game until Rose took charge of the final minutes. Other results: Nets 129, Raptors 127, OT; Mavericks 91, Grizzlies 76; Rockets 103, Wizards 91; 76ers 89, Clippers 88; Hornets 105, Thunder 80.
