Murray throws a dagger at the buzzer to complete Nuggets comeback and beat Lakers

DENVER—

Jamal Murray hit back at the buzzer and the Denver Nuggets erased a 20-point second-half deficit to stun the Los Angeles Lakers 101-99 on Monday night to take a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference playoff series. . .

An agonizing basket by Murray, who fell after the shot, was the Nuggets’ first lead as they took a 5-3 lead in the opening minutes to give the defending NBA champions their 10th straight win over the Lakers.

The series moves to Los Angeles for Game 3 on Thursday night.

Murray’s game-tying shot came after LeBron James missed a long-range shot with 16 seconds left to tie the game at 99.

Michael Porter Jr. grabbed the rebound with 13 seconds left and the Nuggets didn’t call a timeout.

Instead, Murray moved the ball to the right with Anthony Davis’ defensive mark, stepped back and hit the basket just as the buzzer sounded. Both Murray and Davis fell to the Nuggets bench as the roar of the crowd shook Ball Arena.

Murray finished with 20 points, including four in the fourth quarter, and Nikola Jokic had a triple-double with 27 points, 20 rebounds and 10 assists. Porter added 22 points and Aaron Gordon 14 for Denver.

Davis led the Lakers with 32 points, James had 26 and D’Angelo Russell added 23 with a career-best seven 3-pointers in the playoffs.