DENVER – Kawhi Leonard had 17 points and 15 rebounds in another strong outing since returning from a hand injury, and the San Antonio Spurs won their fourth in a row by beating the Denver Nuggets 109-99 on Tuesday night.
Tony Parker scored 18 points, and Tim Duncan added 16, all in the second half, to help the Spurs beat the Nuggets for the fifth consecutive time.
Leonard has been a big part of San Antonio’s recent surge, playing for the third time since returning from a bruised hand that had sidelined him for the previous 15 games.
Kenneth Faried had 26 points and 14 rebounds for the Nuggets, who lost their fourth in arow, including their second in two nights. Golden State routed the Nuggets by 43 points Monday, Denver’s biggest loss of the season and the seventh biggest defeat in franchise history.
Arron Afflalo added 21 points for the Nuggets.
Leading 66-65 in the third quarter, the Spurs used a 7-0 burst to extend their advantage to eight points before settling for an 80-76 lead heading to the fourth.
Leonard then hit two 3-pointers as part of an 11-2 run by the Spurs starting the final period, stretching their advantage to 91-78 with 9:18 left for their biggest lead to that point.
Denver pulled to 100-92 on successive layups by Wilson Chandler and Faried, but Parker cut off the Nuggets’ momentum by connecting on a 3-pointer with 2:01 remaining. The Nuggets could not threaten the rest of the way.
San Antonio took its first lead of the game 29-27 on Cory Joseph’s jumper with 9:03 remaining in the second quarter. The Spurs led 51-48 at halftime, getting five points from Manu Ginobili in the last 1:25 of the period.
TIP INS
Spurs: Assigned Kyle Anderson to the Austin Spurs of the NBA Developmental League. ... Marco Belinelli, out with a strained left groin, did not make the trip.
Nuggets: Sent Erick Green to Fort Wayne of the NBA Developmental League. ... Danilo Gallinari missed a 15th game because of a torn meniscus in his right knee. ... Arron Afflalo has scored at least two 3-pointers in 20 of 42 games this season. ... Denver has been swept in its last three back to back sets.
UP NEXT
Spurs: At Chicago on Thursday night.
Nuggets: Host Boston on Friday night.
