Boo birds lay into Kobe during Nuggets' victory

DENVER — Carmelo Anthony and Denver's fans made sure Kobe Bryant didn't enjoy his return to Colorado.

Anthony had 20 points and helped harass Bryant into a poor shooting night, leading the Nuggets to a 113-91 rout of the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday night in Bryant's first game in Colorado since he was accused of sexual assault last summer.

Bryant was booed from the start and never found a rhythm offensively, finishing with 27 points on 8-of-23 shooting with five turnovers.

The crowd booed Bryant loudly during introductions and kept it going every time he touched the ball. A chant of "Guilty! Guilty!" rang out midway through the third quarter, and several fans made sexual references throughout the game.

Bryant's frustration boiled over in the third quarter when he grabbed Anthony under the basket and both players were called for technical fouls.

Bryant didn't get much help as Shaquille O'Neal and Karl Malone were out with injuries. The Lakers shot 38 percent and were bad on defense, too, leading to their sixth straight road loss and fourth overall.

Andre Miller helped defend Bryant and finished with 20 points and nine assists. Earl Boykins added 22 points for Denver, which shot 49 percent to avoid its first three-game losing streak this season.

Bryant has been accused of attacking a 19-year-old employee at a resort near Vail and faces four years to life in prison or 20 years to life on probation. He has said the sex was consensual, but the Denver crowd obviously wasn't buying it.

Bryant responded well after his last trip to Colorado on Dec. 19, returning to Los Angeles after a hearing in Eagle to hit a game-winning jumper at the buzzer that night against the Nuggets.

He played with the same kind of determination this time, with plenty of grimaces and yells at teammates, but the shots just weren't falling.

Anthony and Miller took turns harassing Bryant, shutting down his drives and forcing him into difficult fadeaways. He didn't score until hitting an 18-foot jumper 5:16 into the game, and was 4-of-11 with three turnovers in the first half.

The Nuggets opened the game with a 10-3 run, let the Lakers back in it, then pushed the lead to 63-48 by halftime.

Anthony had 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting in the first half.