Spurs 108, Nuggets 103: Tim Duncan led the way with 29 points and 13 rebounds as host San Antonio held off a furious Denver rally for its 15th consecutive victory.
Danny Green scored 16 points before leaving with a foot injury for the Spurs, who are two wins shy of matching the franchise record of 17 straight set in 1996. Tony Parker, Tiago Splitter and Manu Ginobili each chipped in 10 points for San Antonio, which has won 11 of the last 15 meetings - including six of seven at home.
Aaron Brooks had 25 points and eight assists to lead the Nuggets, who were eliminated from playoff contention with the loss. Kenneth Faried collected 24 points and 10 rebounds and Timofey Mozgov tallied 14 points and 11 boards as Denver lost its four straight road game.
San Antonio led by as many as 24 early in the third quarter but had an uncharacteristically difficult time salting it away. Denver surged back behind Brooks and Faried, forcing Spurs coach Gregg Popovich to put his starters back in for the stretch run.
The Nuggets had pulled within 90-86 when Parker knocked down a jumper and drew a foul from Ty Lawson — which drew the ire of Denver coach Brian Shaw. Shaw was whistled for a technical, and Parker converted the three-point play and hit the extra free throw to push the lead to eight as San Antonio held on.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The Spurs improved to 45-1 when leading after three quarters while the Nuggets dropped to 1-27 when trailing after three. … San Antonio is 46-9 when scoring 100 or more points. … The Spurs are 23-0 this season when Splitter scores in double figures.
Denver | San Antonio | |
Aaron Brooks 25 | Scoring | Tim Duncan 29 |
Aaron Brooks 8 | Assists | Manu Ginobili 7 |
Timofey Mozgov 11 | Rebounds | Tim Duncan 13 |
Kenneth Faried 8 | Free Throws Made | Tim Duncan 5 |
Darrell Arthur 4 | Steals | Kawhi Leonard 3 |
Darrell Arthur 3 | Blocks | Kawhi Leonard 3 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Denver | 103 | 45.8 | 7-19 | 20-25 | 22 | 43 | 6 | 13 | 18 |
San Antonio | 108 | 48.9 | 8-20 | 14-20 | 30 | 43 | 6 | 11 | 21 |