Nuggets need a win in Game 4 versus San Antonio

The Spurs lead this best-of-seven series 2-1. Game 5 is scheduled to be played on Wednesday at the AT&T Center.

On Saturday, Tim Duncan scored 20 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and blocked five shots to lift the Spurs to a 96-91 win over the Nuggets in Game 3 at the Pepsi Center.

Tony Parker collected 21 points and Manu Ginobili scored 19 for San Antonio. Michael Finley was 5-of-7 from beyond the arc and finished with 16 points, while veteran Robert Horry had 10 points for the Spurs, who missed just one of their 14 free throws.

Carmelo Anthony had 28 points and 12 rebounds for the Nuggets, while Allen Iverson netted 20 in defeat Nene contributed 18 points for Denver, which outrebounded the Spurs, 46-41.

San Antonio has lost five straight Game 4s in the postseason, while the Nuggets have dropped three in a row.

There is some playoff history between the Spurs and Nuggets. San Antonio beat the Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs in 1990, 1995 and 2005 and in the conference semis in 1983, while Denver defeated the Spurs in the opening round in 1985.

The Spurs are appearing in the postseason for the 10th straight year and have won three of the last eight NBA championships. Last season, San Antonio was eliminated in the Western Conference semifinals by the Dallas Mavericks in seven games.

The last time the Spurs lost in the first round of the playoffs was in 2000, when they fell to the Phoenix Suns, 3-1.

Denver earned its fourth straight playoff berth. The Nuggets have been eliminated three straight years in the opening round of the postseason. They fell in five games in the opening round to Minnesota in 2004, San Antonio in 2005 and the Clippers in 2006.

The last time the Nuggets advanced to the second round of the playoffs was during the 1994 postseason. Denver upset the SuperSonics in five games, 3-2, in the opening round that season, but was ousted in seven games by Utah in the Western semifinals.