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Toronto • DeMar DeRozan had 33 points and Kyle Lowry made a couple key baskets late to finish with 29 points, helping the Toronto Raptors beat the Denver Nuggets 105-102 on Monday night.
Danilo Gallinari, Will Barton and Emmanuel Mudiay each had 16 points for Denver, and Jusuf Nurkic added 13 points and a career-high 18 rebounds.
DeRozan is the first Raptor ever to start a season with three straight 30-point games, and his run is one short of Mike James' stretch from 2006 for the longest run at any point in the season.
Lowry hit a tiebreaking 14-footer with 1:36 remaining, then made it 105-102 with 45 seconds remaining on a driving layup.
Wilson Chandler's 3-pointer with 8:49 left gave the Nuggets their first lead in over 34 minutes. The Raptors had the advantage from the 4:12 mark of the first quarter, leading by 19 at one point.
The Nuggets pushed their edge to five before the Raptors clawed back, taking the lead for good on Lowry's jumper.
Jonas Valanciunas' foul on Nurkic 15 seconds later sent the center to the line, but he could only make one of two, and the Raptors extended their lead the next time down the court on Lowry's layup.
Gallinari's desperation 3-pointer as time expired hit the rim and bounced away.
Gallinari had nine points in the third quarter, helping propel the Nuggets on a 9-0 run to pull within four points. The Raptors got nine of their own from DeRozan, including a 13-foot buzzer-beater, to give them an 88-84 edge heading into the fourth quarter.
Bulls 118, Nets 88 • In New York, Jimmy Butler scored 22 points, Dwyane Wade had 12 in the first road game of his career not played for Miami, and Chicago improved to 3-0 by beating Brooklyn.
The Bulls had seven players in double figures, with Wade becoming the last of them when he left Bojan Bogdanovic behind with a crossover and was fouled on a drive to the basket in the fourth quarter.
Nikola Mirotic had 16 points and 10 rebounds, while Taj Gibson added 14 points and 11 boards for the Bulls.
After home victories against Eastern Conference playoff teams Boston and Indiana to open the season, the Bulls easily handled their road opener, leading by as many as 33 points.
Bogdanovic scored 15 points and Jeremy Lin had 14 for the Nets, who fell to 1-3.
Butler made all five shots as the Bulls built an 18-point lead after one quarter that grew to 25 in the second. Chicago led 93-66 after three quarters, leaving the crowd with little to cheer in the fourth beyond Wade's smooth moves.
The Nets' first three games had all been decided by single digits — they had actually outscored opponents 328-326 despite starting 1-2 — but they were never in this one after the opening minutes.
Butler and Gibson were a combined 9 for 9 in the first quarter as the Bulls got a number of easy baskets while playing at the quicker pace they are using since adding Wade and Rajon Rondo to their backcourt.
The Nets, who entered averaging an NBA-high 37.3 3-point attempts per game, were 5 for 31 (16 percent) behind the arc.
Hawks 106, Kings 95 • In Atlanta, Dwight Howard had 18 points, Kyle Korver and Dennis Schroder scored 17 points apiece, and Atlanta beat Sacramento for its first 3-0 start in five seasons.
Every Atlanta starter scored in double figures, and the Hawks held Sacramento's DeMarcus Cousins in check after he averaged 30 points in the Kings' first three games. He finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Rudy Gay scored 22 points for Sacramento (2-2), which led 81-79 after three quarters. Matt Barnes also scored 14 points, and Ben McLemore finished with 12.
Howard went 8 for 20 from the line, but also contributed 11 rebounds and four blocked shots. Paul Millsap added 13 points and a game-high 14 rebounds.
Atlanta made 29 of its 47 free-throw attempts, and Sacramento coach Dave Joeger pleaded to official Karl Lane at one point: "My man over here (the scorekeeper) is running out of lead! Ten fouls in one quarter?"
The Kings started slowly, missing their first six shots. Atlanta scored 31 points in the second quarter — even though Howard missed 8 of 10 free throws in the period - and led 53-44 at halftime.
Sacramento responded in the third, opening the period with a 22-7 run fueled largely by Gay and Cousins.
The Kings led 83-81 in the fourth when Millsap made a foul shot and Kent Bazemore connected on a 3 to give the Hawks the lead. Korver helped Atlanta hold on with another 3 with about four minutes left.