Lakers 106, Nuggets 89

Kobe Bryant scored 23 points tonight at the Honda Center, Lamar Odom had 17 points and nine rebounds and Josh Powell had 15 points in a reserve role as the Lakers improved to 6-1 in exhibition play. Carmelo Anthony scored 28 points to lead the Nuggets (3-4). The teams play again Friday night in San Diego, the Lakers' final exhibition. The start of the regular season can't come soon enough as far as Bryant is concerned. Said Bryant: "It's been a long preseason. It seems longer than usual. I think we're kind of antsy to get going. We've had a lot of downtime. We've had games and then had a week off."