DENVER- When the pregame pyrotechnics ended, the public address announcerstopped screaming, the house lights came up and Game 3 started, nothinghad changed.
当比赛前的烟火表演结束，广播员停止叫喊，球场上空的灯光亮起，第3场比赛开始——什么都没有改变。
TheLakers were still the top-seeded team in the Western Conferenceplayoffs and the Denver Nuggets were seeded eighth. Only the venue wasdifferent.
湖人还是那支在西部季后赛排名第1的队伍，而掘金也是今年的西部8号种子。唯一不同的是比赛场馆而已。
Ifanything, the differences between the teams were morepronouncedSaturday afternoon, when the Lakers hammered the Nuggets102-84 infront of a sellout crowd of 19,602 at the Pepsi Center to takeacommanding three- games-to-none lead.
Game 4 of the opening-round best-of-7 series is Monday at Denver.
季后赛首轮7场制的第4场比赛本周一还将在丹佛进行。
No team in NBA history has rallied to win a series after trailing, 3-0.
NBA历史上从来没有一支队伍能在0：3落后的情况下翻盘。
Certainly,the Lakers appeared to land a knockout blow to the Nuggets inGame 3,holding them to 38 points in the second half and 37.2 percentshootingfor the game.
Naturally, the Lakers declined to view it that way.
很自然地，湖人队拒绝这样看待下一场比赛。
"Itdefinitely helped, but it's not a knockout until it's over," saidLukeWalton, one of five Lakers to score 10 or more points. "This was agoodround for us, so we definitely feel like we have a chance to knockthemout now."
"You'rehuman," he said. "There's an instinct to say, 'OK, you're onestepcloser, and in all probability there's no way they can come backandwin the series. They're probably not going to come with theirbesteffort.' "So you start telling yourself all this stuff. It takes anextreme amount of focus to just deaden that noise."
When asked what he expected from the Nuggets for Game 4, Pau Gasol shrugged.
当被问及对第4场比赛的期待时，加索尔只是耸了耸肩。
"I'mnot sure," he said. "I'm guessing they're going to fight back andtryto get that first win, but we're not going to assume anything.We'rejust going to come out hard and try to finish the series as soonas wecan. We know how to do it. We know what to do. We've just got togo outthere and get it done."
So far, the Lakers have found three distinctly different ways to batter the Nuggets.
到现在为止，湖人已经找到了三种完全不同的办法去击败掘金。
InGame 1, the Lakers capitalized on the Nuggets' porous interiordefenseand Gasol scored 36 points and added 16 rebounds, eight assistsandthree blocked shots.
第1场比赛，湖人充分利用了掘金孱弱的内线防守，加索尔拿下36分、16个篮板、8次助攻和3次封盖。
InGame 2, they took advantage of the Nuggets' soft defense ontheperimeter and Kobe Bryant torched them for 49 points and 10 assists.
第2场比赛，他们充分利用了掘金外线防守的无力，科比在他们身上轻松拿下49分和10次助攻。
InGame 3, they combined forces in their best show of depth and defensesofar in the series. Bryant led the Lakers with 22 pointsandeightassists. Walton added 15 points in a reserve role, FisherandGasol each had 14 and Lamar Odom added 12.
Carmelo Anthony led Denver with 16 points on 5-for-22 shooting.
掘金队方面，安东尼22投6中，拿下全队最高的16分。
TheNuggets used an 8-0 run to trim an 18-point deficit to 69-59 in thethird quarter. The Lakers called a timeout,regrouped and, sparked byFisher's 3-pointer, ended the quarter with a14-5 run that gave them an83-61 lead to start the fourth.
TheLakers won with defense, to be sure, but they received asignificantassist from the poor-shooting Nuggets. Only two Nuggetsstarters shotbetter than 50 percent.
KenyonMartin had 12 points on 6-for-11 shooting and Linas Kleiza had15points on 5-for-9 shooting. Allen Iverson was 5-for-16 en route to15points and Marcus Camby missed both shots he attempted and didnotscore. Camby had 12 rebounds.
Reserve J.R. Smith led the Nuggets reserves with 11 points on 4-for-11 shooting.
替补出场的史密斯11投4中，拿到11分，在替补阵容中得分最高。
Itadded up to another winning performance for the Lakers, who toyedwiththe Nuggets in the fourth quarter as their lead swelled to 24points.Whether it took the last bit of fight out of the Nuggets remainsto beseen, however.
"Noquestion, we are frustrated," Denver coach George Karl said. "I tipmyhat to the Lakers in regards to their defense. They are better thanIthought they were."
