A night to remember for former UW great Nance Jr.

DENVER - It was the 28th game in an 82-game schedule for the Los Angeles Lakers.

But for former University of Wyoming men's basketball star Larry Nance Jr., Tuesday's game against the Denver Nuggets at Pepsi Center was anything but another game.

Nance, the Lakers' 27th overall pick in this summer's NBA Draft, played in his 23rd game and made his eighth start. Nance got off to a fast start, and finished with 10 points and two rebounds in 19 minutes as the Lakers rallied from a 21-point deficit for a 111-107 victory.

It was just the fifth win of the season for Los Angeles, and after the game it got on an airplane and headed home to play a game against Oklahoma City Wednesday night, followed by a Christmas Day game against the Los Angeles Clippers.

However, Tuesday's game will serve as a lasting memory for Nance, and many of his fans.

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NBA protocol allows media access coaches prior to the game.

Lakers coach Byron Scott came out 90 minutes before tip off, and had some good things to say about Nance.

"I just like the way Larry plays. He knows how to play," Scott said. "He doesn't go outside the box, which means he doesn't do things he's not capable of doing. He plays with a lot of energy. He doesn't take shots when he has shots, which is one thing we've been harping on him about. When he's open, we want him to take the open shot.

"He's relentless in going after the boards on both ends of the floor. He does a real good job against his guy defensively. He's a good help-side defender. He's one of those young rookies we don't have to run plays for. He just goes out there and he plays."

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Players also are available for a brief time prior to games, but the Lakers hung out in the locker room, Nance was no where to be found.

Nance was in the arena signing autographs and taking pictures with UW fans who made the trip to watch him play.

The game was dubbed "UW Night Out" as the UW Alumni Association and its athletics fundraising arm - the Cowboy Joe Club - worked with the Nuggets staff for fans to purchase tickets to the game.

Abby Stewart, a UW graduate who coordinates a lot of these events for the Nuggets, said about 50 people usually show.

Not this time.

"There's got to be 1,500 Wyoming fans in this building tonight," Stewart said. "This was a total shocker, and I couldn't be more happy about it. There was a line all the way up the stairs (of the arena) waiting to see Larry."

Media relations personnel for the Lakers had to practically drag Nance away from the fans as game-time approached. While many of his teammates were on the floor getting some shots up and going through pre-game warm-ups, Nance was still signing autographs and getting pictures taken with fans.

"Yeah, I was shocked," Nance said of the number of fans that were there. "That is a tough drive this time of year so I didn't think that many people would come down. It was really cool. I wish I had more time because I would have met all of the people that came."

Among the UW fans there was UW President Richard McGinity, who posed for a picture with Nance before the game.

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The announced crowd was 19,124, and there seemed to be an equal mix of Nuggets and Lakers fans. Many of them donned Nance's No. 7 Lakers jersey. Many also were there to see Lakers guard Kobe Bryant, who is playing in his 20th and final season with the team. Bryant will retire at the end of the season, and this was his second-to-last time he will play in Denver.

Chants of "Kobe, Kobe, Kobe" were loud and evident during player introductions and throughout the game, but so were chants of "Larry, Larry, Larry" for Nance.

They became even louder when Nance made his first two shots within the first two minutes in the game.

"It's impossible not to (feed off the energy of the crowd). I felt like I was back playing at the Arena-Auditorium in Laramie," Nance said. "It was really cool to hear the 'Larry' chants and all the fans screaming. It was awesome."

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Nance played the first 5 minutes, 39 seconds of the game, but didn't come back until 4:57 left in the second quarter. He picked up three fouls in just over two minutes, and Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried beat Nance off the dribble for a dunk.

With 39.9 seconds left in the first half, Nance grabbed an offensive rebound and finished with a dunk. He ended the first half with six points on 3 of 6 shooting, two rebounds and three fouls in 10 minutes of action as the Lakers trailed 64-51 at halftime.

Nance started the second half, and on the Lakers' first offensive possession got a dunk. With 7:46 left in the third quarter, Bryant threw a lob to Nance for another dunk.

The "Larry, Larry, Larry" chants were the loudest at any point in the game.

UW fans got used to seeing Nance dunks when he played for the Cowboys. However, Nance said that didn't click for him in the NBA until Bryant told him something during a game at Houston earlier this month.

"I went to the rim kind of soft and (Houston post) Dwight Howard blocked my shot," Nance said. "(Bryant) came up to me and said: 'Nance, every time you get near the rim dunk the ball.' I was doing that at Wyoming and I don't know why I wasn't doing it in the league yet, but it clicked.

"Little things he says to me on court, in the locker room and on the practice court I listen."

Nance describes Bryant as "a mentor," and his mentor had some kind words for the rookie after the game.

"He's been playing great for us. He's attacking the rim," Bryant said. "Now, I just want to make sure he stays confident with his shooting and not think about it. If he's open, just pull the trigger. He's playing a phenomenal role for us."

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Bryant's game-high 31 points, which also matched a season-high, was a big factor in the Lakers win. So was his defense on Denver's Will Barton, who had 23 first-half points. With Bryant guarding him in the second half, Barton scored two points.

Bryant's patented fade-away 16-foot jumper with 32.2 seconds left gave the Lakers a 107-100 lead and all but secured the victory.

The "Kobe, Kobe, Kobe" chants followed, and they continued as the final buzzer sounded and he left the floor.

But so did the "Larry, Larry, Larry" chants.

"The coolest thing was when Kobe walked past and everybody was 'oh my God, Kobe,' which was rightfully so," Nance said. "Then I walked past and there were hundreds of Wyoming people still there wanting to see me. That was really special for me for them to stay that long after the game."

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The Lakers locker room was a happy one after the game.

Los Angeles center Roy Hibbert's locker was next to Nance's, and he gave Nance some good-natured ribbing about the game and all the attention he received.

Before he talked to some of the media, Nance had to perform one of his "rookie duties" by getting all the name placards from the lockers for the other players.

Nance answered questions about the game and his homecoming of sorts for nearly 15 minutes with the same kind of class, calmness and maturity he did in his four years at UW.

But there isn't much time in the NBA to enjoy wins or dwell on losses. The NBA season is a marathon, not a sprint, and Nance has already played nearly as many games (23) as he did during a single college season.

"I was tired at the end of last season (at UW), but I still have about 50 games to go," Nance said with a laugh.

"It's been a whirlwind so far. I'm looking to do whatever the team needs me to do to win. Whether that's chase loose balls, lock my man down on defense or get rebounds, that's what I'm going to do."

The Lakers are not a playoff team, but they are one of the youngest teams in the NBA.

Of the 15 players on the roster, four are rookies and three have one year of experience. Nance who turns 23 on Jan. 1, is older age-wise than two players the Lakers hope to build their future around - rookie guard D'Angelo Russell from Ohio State and second-year forward Julius Randle of Kentucky. Randle fractured the tibia bone in his right leg in the season-opener in 2014-15 and missed the rest of the season.

Both played just one season of college basketball before being drafted by the Lakers. They combined for 14 points off the bench against the Nuggets.

Randle said Nance has made a good impression in his rookie season.

"He's a great guy on and off the court, and nobody has ever had an issue with Larry," Randle said. "He gets along with everybody. He plays hard all the time. He's an easy guy and fun guy to play with."

"He's a great glue guy. Every team needs a guy like that where he isn't going to try and do too much, but he's going to play hard all the time and make the most of his opportunities. He can be a great piece for our team."

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Nance joked with reporters after the game that he felt he had more fans there than Bryant. Perhaps that was true.

But he left Pepsi Center with a lot of fond memories, and knowing he has a lot of fans in and around the Cowboy State who are still pulling for him. While meeting fans before the game, he signed numerous items such as jerseys, basketballs, notepads and even a baseball. Nance also held a baby.

But life in the NBA doesn't offer a lot of time to reflect.

"It never ends," he said. "This was a great win, but got to get ready tomorrow."