LeBron James, Anthony Davis propel Lakers to avoid elimination in Game 4 against Nuggets

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Anthony Davis #3 of the Los Angeles Lakers takes a shot against Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) (Getty Images)

LOS ANGELES - The Los Angeles Lakers rallied and defied the odds Saturday night by avoiding elimination. They now head back to Denver for Game 5 of the best-of-seven series.

LeBron James got the first bucket of the night, followed by the crowd's cheers vibrating across the downtown LA arena.

Despite the "Fire Darvin Ham!" chants at the end of Thursday night's game, the Lakers head coach took questions in stride Saturday ahead of Game 4 and continued giving positive words of wisdom.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Lakers on brink of elimination after Game 3 loss to Denver Nuggets

"You just gotta see the glass half full," Ham said. "You embrace the joy of competition. You don’t struggle with stress or fear. It’s basketball. As long as you go out with your best foot forward, you can live with that."

He also said the Lakers "have to be ready to fight possession by possession."

The Lakers came out ready for battle and finished the first half up 61-48, led by Anthony Davis’ 17 points.

However, it's consistently been in the second half when the Lakers have struggled. Ahead of Game 4, Nuggets head coach Michael Malone acknowledged his team had slow starts in the series.

"We've been down at halftime, and then we found a way to kind of claw back into the game after being down," Malone said.

This time was different. Denver couldn't quite find their groove and the Lakers ended the third quarter up 91-80.

The Lakers held the lead to avoid elimination and won 119-108. LeBron James and Anthony Davis were sensational with 30 and 25 points, respectively. D'Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves also had 21 points apiece.

The Lakers are down 3-1 in the series and Game 5 is scheduled for Monday night at the Ball Arena in Denver.

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