Field Level Media
Feb 23, 2018
Gary Harris scored 23 points, including six in the final minutes during a crucial, decisive run, as the Denver Nuggets outlasted the San Antonio Spurs 122-119 on Friday at the Pepsi Center in Denver.
Harris' jumper with 3:05 to play and the game tied at 114 were the first points of a 6-1 run (with all those points scored by Harris) that sent the Nuggets to a 120-115 lead with 45.3 seconds remaining. Denver was able to hang on from there, winning its fourth straight contest and its 10th in its past 13 games.
Nikola Jokic led the Nuggets with 28 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, recording his third straight triple-double before fouling out with 1:46 to play. Wilson Chandler added a double-double with 18 points and 16 rebounds, while Will Barton hit for 15 points, Mason Plumlee tallied 12 and Trey Lyles scored 11.
San Antonio's LaMarcus Aldridge led all scorers with 38 points, his 12th 30-plus-point game this season. Patty Mills poured in 21 points, and Dejounte Murray, Tony Parker and Pau Gasol added 12 points apiece. Gasol also took 12 rebounds for the Spurs, who lost their fourth straight game, including on Feb. 13 against Denver in their final game before the All-Star break.
The first half went back and forth and featured 11 lead changes and 10 ties. The largest lead was six points by the Spurs, but Denver also led by as many as five points in stretches of the first 24 minutes.
Chandler's 16 points and 15 from Jokic led the Nuggets to a 63-61 advantage at halftime. Mills had 14 points and Aldridge scored 12 (on 6-of-8 shooting from the floor) to help San Antonio keep pace.
The Nuggets used a 12-1 run late in the third quarter to break away from an 83-80 deficit and eventually carry a 96-89 lead into the fourth quarter. San Antonio did not attempt a 3-point field goal in the third quarter.
San Antonio heads to Cleveland for a game Sunday against the new-look Cavaliers; the game is the last of seven on the Spurs' annual Rodeo Road Trip. The Nuggets will continue a three-game, post-All-Star-break homestand when they host Houston, also on Sunday.
--Field Level Media