TORONTO — DeMar DeRozan poured in 33 points while Kyle Lowry added 29 and the Toronto Raptors held on to beat the Denver Nuggets 105-102 on Monday.

Jonas Valanciunas added 12 points and nine rebounds, while DeMarre Carroll finished with 10 points for Toronto (2-1), which led by as many as 18 points early in what would turn into a nail-biter.

It was another record-setting night for DeRozan, who became the first player in franchise history to start a season with three consecutive 30-point games.

Danilo Gallinari, Will Barton and Emmanuel Mudiay had 16 points apiece for Denver (1-2). Barton left the game with an ankle injury late in the third quarter.

The Raptors let an 18-point lead slip away in third quarter, and when Jameer Nelson drilled a three-pointer with six seconds left in the frame, it cut Toronto's advantage to just two points. DeRozan replied with a turnaround jumper at the buzzer to send the Raptors into the fourth with an 88-84 advantage.

Canadian Jamal Murray launched a long pass to a wide open Wilson Chandler, whose three gave the Nuggets their first lead of the game. Nelson drained another three and Denver led by four points with 7:53 to play.

DeRozan and Lowry instrumented an 13-5 run, capped by a Lowry driving layup with 45 seconds that put the Raptors up by three and brought the Air Canada Centre crowd out of their seats.

Gallinari and Mudiay had three-pointers bounce off the rim to guarantee Toronto's victory.

Marred by turnovers in Friday's loss to Cleveland, the Raptors cleaned up their act against Denver, giving up the ball just seven times.

Murray, who grew up an hour west of Toronto in Kitchener, Ont., played his first NBA game at the ACC. The 19-year-old who starred at Kentucky last season played five minutes of the second quarter then started the fourth in place of Barton. He finished with a point, two rebounds and two assists, and remains without a basket in his young NBA career.

The Raptors capped a three-game homestand, while the night was Game 1 of a Nuggets' five-game road trip.

DeRozan led the way with 14 points in the first quarter and Toronto led 33-24 going into the second.

A Lowry pullup jumper midway through the second stretched the Raptors' lead to 18 points, and they took a 62-49 advantage into the halftime break.

The Raptors play the Wizards in Washington on Wednesday before returning home to host the Miami Heat on Friday.