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Denver Nuggets Fall to San Antonio Spurs 109-98

By Matthew Schoettler

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The Denver Nuggets entered their road matchup against the San Antonio Spurs with a 6-5 record; however, the Spurs proved to be too much for the Nuggets.

The Denver Nuggets started their three game road trip against the Phoenix Suns; however, the Suns blew out the Nuggets to get the win. Kenneth Faried suffered back spasms and had to exit the game early. However, he was not forced to miss more than just one half of action. Following the matchup against the Suns, the Nuggets traveled to New Orleans to take on the Pelicans. The Pelicans lost their previous three games, and the Nuggets made it four-straight losses for New Orleans.

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Anthony Davis exited the game early with an apparent shoulder injury off of a pick play. Davis missed the remainer of the game, and the Nuggets took full advantage of his absence. With the win against New Orleans, the Nuggets jumped back over the .500 mark and into seventh place in the Western Conference. However, after their second of three road games, the Nuggets had to face an impressive Spurs team that is among the best teams in the West. 

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Emmanuel Mudiay, Gary Harris, Danilo Gallinari, Kenneth Faried, and J.J. Hickson headlined the starting rotation for the Denver Nuggets. Moreover, Tony Parker Kawhi Leonard, Danny Green, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Tim Duncan started for the San Antonio Spurs. The Denver Nuggets were without two of their big men due to back injuries, Jusuf Nurkic and Joffrey Lauvergne. The Nuggets needed all the help they could get while facing one of the best frontcourt duos in Aldridge and Duncan.

The Denver Nuggets fell behind early, trailing 31-24 after the first quarter; moreover, the Nuggets could not cut the deficit as both teams scored 34 points in the second quarter. Thus, the Nuggets entered halftime 65-58. Coming out of halftime, the Nuggets looked to trim the Spurs’ lead, but the Spurs proved to be too much in the third quarter, extending their lead to 14 points. Down 14 points entering the fourth quarter, the Nuggets needed an unbelievable quarter against one of the best coached teams in the NBA. Ultimately, the Nuggets lost 109-98.

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With the loss to the Spurs, the Denver Nuggets fell back to .500, sporting a 6-6 record; however, the Nuggets come back to the Mile High City for four-straight games. For the Nuggets, Nikola Jokic led the team in both points and rebounds off of the bench, contributing 23 points to go with 12 rebounds. Emmanuel Mudiay had a terrible day from the floor, scoring five points (2-12 FG). Mudiay added a team-high seven assists to go with three rebounds.

In addition to a down game from Mudiay, Danilo Gallinari struggled shooting for the second-consecutive game, hitting just two of his nine shots for nine points. Gary Harris, however, was effective shooting the ball, draining 60 percent of his shots for 15 points. Also, Kenneth Faried was, once again, his usual self, scoring 15 points to go with seven rebounds. Outside of Jokic’s impressive game, the Nuggets looked overmatched by the Spurs.

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Tim Duncan and LaMarcus Aldridge both contributed double-doubles, and between the two, they had 23 points and 23 rebounds. Kawhi Leonard and Tony Parker both contributed 20 points or more, with Parker scoring a team-high 24. With the win, the Spurs improved their record to 9-2 and are firmly in second place behind the Golden State Warriors. After the Denver Nuggets third-straight road game, they now head home for four games. The Nuggets look to improve their record at home over the next week.

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