LOS ANGELES — Kobe Bryant scored big at the start and finish tonight. In between, he set up his teammates for easy baskets. It turned out to be a winning formula.

Bryant had 49 points and 10 assists, and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Denver Nuggets 122-107 to take a 2-0 lead in their first-round playoff series.

Games 3 and 4 will be in Denver on Saturday and Monday night.

Bryant, who was 18-for-27 from the field and finished one point off his career playoff high, scored 20 points in the first quarter to get the Lakers off to a fast start, and 19 over the last seven minutes to keep them safely ahead. He left with 2:02 remaining to a loud ovation and chants of "MVP, MVP" from the capacity crowd of 18,997 at Staples Center.

Bryant was replaced by Coby Karl, the son of Denver coach George Karl. It was the first time in NBA playoff history that a father has coached against his son.

Pau Gasol added 18 points and 10 rebounds and Luke Walton scored 18 points for the Lakers. Lamar Odom, hampered by foul trouble throughout the second half, was held to four points, four rebounds and six assists, but in the end it didn't matter.

Allen Iverson had 31 points and six assists to lead the Nuggets. Carmelo Anthony added 23 points, J.R. Smith had a career playoff high 21 and Marcus Camby had 17 rebounds for Denver. Kenyon Martin, who fouled out with 5:47 remaining, scored 10 points.

The Lakers led 89-79 entering the fourth quarter. The Nuggets drew within five points three times before a three-point play by Bryant made it 101-93, and that was only the beginning.

Two foul shots by Bryant in a span of two seconds after technical fouls against Smith and Iverson made it 105-94 with 5:37 left, and Bryant added a 3-pointer 18 seconds later to extend the Los Angeles lead to 14.

Game over.

Anthony scored seven straight points to trigger an 11-0 run, giving Denver a 68-67 lead midway through the third quarter. With Odom on the bench with four fouls, Los Angeles appeared to be in some trouble. But Walton scored 10 points during a 22-11 spurt to finish the quarter and give the Lakers a 10-point lead. Bryant had four assists during the run.

Linas Kleiza made just his 14th start of the season in place of Anthony Carter, giving Denver more firepower and additional size. The move paid off early as Kleiza and Anthony both scored six points to help the Nuggets take a 20-14 lead.

Then Bryant went to work, scoring 16 of his 20 first-quarter points in the final 4› minutes of the period as the Lakers outscored the Nuggets 19-12 for a 33-32 lead. Bryant shot 8-for-10 in the period, compared to his 9-for-26 effort in Game 1, when he scored 18 of his 32 points in the final 8› minutes of the Lakers' 128-114 victory.

The Lakers outscored Denver 14-4 to start the second quarter for a 47-36 lead. Bryant had 25 points in the first half, which ended with Los Angeles on top 59-49. Gasol, who had 36 points, 16 rebounds and eight assists in Game 1, had just four points, four rebounds and no assists at the midway point of this game.