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 (see full recap).
Howard, Hawks remain unbeaten
ATLANTA -- Dwight Howard had 18 points, Kyle Korver and Dennis Schroder scored 17 points apiece, and the Atlanta Hawks beat the Sacramento Kings 106-95 on Monday night for their 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.
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Rudy Gay scored 22 points for Sacramento (2-2), which led 81-79 after three quarters.
Howard made just 8 of 20 free throws, but he also had 11 rebounds and four blocked shots (see full recap).
Bulls smash Nets, reach 3-0
NEW YORK -- Jimmy Butler scored 22 points, Dwyane Wade had 12 in the first road game of his career not played for Miami, and the Chicago Bulls improved to 3-0 by beating the Brooklyn Nets 118-88 on Monday night.
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 (see full recap).
