LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Anthony Davis had 37 points and 10 rebounds, LeBron James added 15 points and 12 assists, and the Los Angeles Lakers rolled to a 126-114 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Friday night in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals.

Slow starters in the previous two rounds, the top-seeded Lakers put this one away in a hurry, opening a double-digit lead in the first half that they easily extended in the third quarter.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 18 points and Dwight Howard rejoined the rotation with 13 in a powerful return to the conference finals for the Lakers, who hadn’t been to the NBA’s final four since winning their last championship in 2010.

Los Angeles dropped Game 1 against both Portland and Houston before winning the next four games. The Lakers quickly knocked off any rust for another long layoff in the bubble against a Denver team that’s had things much tougher.

Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray each scored 21 points for the Nuggets, playing in the conference finals for the first time since the Lakers beat them in 2009.