Nuggets rock winless Mavericks

Dec 27, 2011, 6:14 GMT

Los Angeles - The Dallas Mavericks are looking more like chumps rather than NBA Champs after back-to-back blowout losses to open the season.

Ty Lawson poured in 20 of his 27 points in the decisive first half, and the Denver Nuggets rocked the Mavericks, 115-93 on Monday night in their season opener.

Al Harrington and Andre Miller added 18 apiece for Denver, which went on a 20-0 second-quarter run against their sloppy hosts, to take a commanding 69-42 halftime cushion en route to the lopsided victory.

German wunderkind Dirk Nowitzki netted 20 points for Dallas (0-2), which trailed by 35 points en route to getting spanked by the visiting Miami Heat in Sunday's season opener before suffering a near-carbon copy embarrassment from the Nuggets the following night.

Hedo Turkoglu scored 13 of his 23 points in the final quarter, Dwight Howard had 21 and JJ Redick added 20 off the bench, leading the host Orlando Magic past the Houston Rockets, 105-94, for its first win of the season.

Elsewhere: the Sacramento Kings surprised the LA Lakers 100-91; the San Antonio Spurs tamed the Memphis Grizzlies 95-82; the Charlotte Bobcats beat the Milwaukee Bucks 96-95; the Indiana Pacers pounded the Detroit Pistons 91-79; the Toronto Raptors trimmed the Cleveland Cavaliers 104-96; the Oklahoma City Thunder edged the Minnesota Timberwolves 104-100.

Also, the New Jersey Nets clipped the Washington Wizards 90-84; the New Orleans Hornets shaded the Phoenix Suns 85-84; the Portland Trail Blazers slipped past the Philadelphia 76ers 107-103; and the Golden State Warriors stopped the Chicago Bulls 99-91.