Anthony returned from injury and to the Nuggets starting lineup on January 30, 2009, in a game against the Charlotte Bobcats in which he scored 19 points. Anthony was suspended for one game by the Nuggets for staying on the court and refusing to leave the game after coach George Karl benched him during a game against the Pacers. The Nuggets won the Northwest Division and placed second in the Western Conference, finishing the season with a franchise record-tying 54 wins (54–28 overall). Anthony averaged 22.8 points per game and made a career-high 37.1% of his shots from three-point range. After losing in five straight playoff appearances (2004–2008), on April 29, 2009, Anthony won his first playoff series when the Nuggets beat the New Orleans Hornets at home 107–86 where Anthony finished with a playoff career-high 34 points and four steals. In a post-game conference, Anthony said "Yeah, finally... Took me 5 years to get that gorilla off my back, it's a great feeling." The Nuggets beat the Hornets in five games in the First Round of the playoffs and proceeded to beat the Dallas Mavericks 4–1 in the Conference Semifinals with Anthony scoring 30 points in a solid game five performance. In the third game of the semifinals, Anthony made a last second three-point shot to give the Nuggets the win after being down by two points (103–105). Denver advanced to the Conference Finals for the first time since 1985 but was eliminated, 4–2, by the eventual NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers on his birthday. Anthony was named to the All-NBA Third Team for the third time in his career. 2009–10 season In the opening two games of the 2009–10 season, Anthony totaled 71 points, scoring 30 points in the home opener and 41 the next night, in wins against division rivals Utah Jazz and Portland Trail Blazers respectively. Anthony became one of three players in the Nuggets' history to open with 70 or more points through two games—tied with Nick Van Exel with 71 points—surpassed only by Alex English who did it twice, in 1985 (79) and 1988 (74). It was also only the second time since 1987 that the Nuggets started the season 2–0. In their third game, Anthony scored 42 points. It was the first time they went 3–0 since 1985. In the month of November, Anthony was named the NBA player of the week and