Nuggets 99 - 100 Spurs
Final
  for this game

Nuggets aim for new streak, visit San Antonio

Mar 27, 2013 - 2:29 PM

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(Sports Network) - In order for the Denver Nuggets to start a new winning streak, they will have to get past the San Antonio Spurs Wednesday night on the road.

The Nuggets were blown out by the New Orleans Hornets 110-86 Monday in the Big Easy and saw their 15-game winning streak come to an end. The playoff-bound Nuggets had won six in a row on the road and tasted defeat for the first time since Feb. 22 against the Washington Wizards.

Danilo Gallinari paced Denver with 24 points, while Kenneth Faried followed with 13 and seven rebounds for the Nuggets, who fell one win shy of a franchise record. Andre Iguodala was held to just six points.

"This league has a way of humbling anybody who doesn't have the right karma or the right approach to playing basketball," Nuggets coach George Karl said. "They played better than we did, and they earned it."

Nuggets guard and leading scorer Ty Lawson missed his third straight game with a heel issue and is questionable against the Spurs. Lawson is averaging 16.9 points and 6.9 assists this season.

Denver is in the thick of a playoff chase and sits third in the West Conference -- just one-half game ahead of the Los Angeles Clippers and one game in front of the Memphis Grizzlies. The Nuggets, who own a 17-20 road mark, are also 3 1/2 games behind the Oklahoma City Thunder for Northwest bragging rights.

San Antonio enters Wednesday's showdown coming off a loss, a 96-95 setback to the Houston Rockets Sunday in Space City. James Harden's jumper with 4.5 seconds left ended the Spurs' four-game winning streak.

Tim Duncan scored 17 points and Kawhi Leonard finished with 12 for the Spurs, who still lead the Oklahoma City Thunder by 1 1/2 games for the top spot in the Western Conference. Still, the Spurs are 8-3 in the last 11 games.

"I think we're playing better. The last few games have been pretty good. I thought we worked hard tonight, executed pretty well," said Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich. "We were probably fortunate to have an opportunity to win the game."

The Spurs have won five in a row in the Alamo City and will start a three-game homestand Wednesday versus Denver, the Clippers and Miami. San Antonio is 30-4 as the host this season.

San Antonio and Denver have split a pair of meetings this season with each team prevailing on its home floor.






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