Denver Nuggets at San Antonio Spurs 3/4/19: Starting Lineups, Matchup Preview, Betting Odds
Denver Nuggets at San Antonio Spurs Preview
The San Antonio Spurs are finally back home and success has seemed to follow. They’ll test that success tonight as they host the Denver Nuggets in what could be a first-round playoff preview.
Denver is currently second in the Western Conference and just 1.5 games behind the Golden State Warriors. They are 42-20 on the season, are 5-5 in their last 10 and will look to snap a two-game skid in San Antonio tonight. The Spurs are 35-29 and sit in eighth place. For the moment, they are safe at eighth as they are three games ahead of the Sacramento Kings. They are also just a half game behind the Los Angeles Clippers and will look to close the gap tonight. While the Spurs are 3-7 in their last 10, they enter tonight’s game on a two-game winning streak.
In their last matchup, the Nuggets won 102-99 on December 28. Jamal Murray led the Nuggets with 31 points, while LaMarcus Aldridge paced the Spurs with 24.
TV Schedule
Date: 03/04/19
Time: 8:30pm ET
Arena: AT&T Center, San Antonio, TX
Channel: FSSW-SA/ALT
Denver Nuggets Starting Lineup
| Position | Starter |
|---|---|
| PG | Jamal Murray |
| SG | Gary Harris |
| SF | Will Barton |
| PF | Paul Millsap |
| C | Nikola Jokic |
Contents
Nuggets Analysis
The Denver Nuggets had been on a roll with five straight wins to put some pressure on the first place Golden State Warriors until their recent two-game skid. Last Thursday, the Jazz topped them 111-104 and then they lost to the Pelicans 112-120, who were without Anthony Davis.
The Nuggets started off hot in the game, scoring 39 first-quarter points, but they allowed New Orleans to score 40 points in the second quarter and could not outscore them any quarter from then on.
A combination of All-Star center Nikola Jokic getting into foul trouble early, and the Nuggets defense struggling to defend Jrue Holiday and Julius Randle resulted in the loss.
“We had the lead and were playing good defense,” Jokic said after the game. “Then, we kind of relaxed and they used that against us. We let them take control of the game.”
On the bright side for Denver is that they had their original starting five together for the first time since early in the season. Jokic and Jamal Murray had 20 points apiece, Paul Millsap added 16, and they got double-digit scoring off the bench from Mason Plumlee and Isaiah Thomas.
Nuggets Quick Links: Nuggets Starting Lineup, Nuggets Roster, Nuggets Depth Chart, Nuggets Injuries, Nuggets News, Nuggets Schedule
San Antonio Spurs Preview Starting Lineup
| Position | Starter |
|---|---|
| PG | Derrick White |
| SG | Bryn Forbes |
| SF | DeMar DeRozan |
| PF | LaMarcus Aldridge |
| C | Jakob Poeltl |
Spurs Analysis
After going 1-7 on the Rodeo Road Trip, the San Antonio Spurs needed wins and needed them badly to avoid falling out of the top eight in the Western Conference.
They returned home last Wednesday with a 105-93 win over the Detroit Pistons and then got a big win on Saturday night, 116-102 over the Oklahoma City Thunder in a game that was never really close. In the past, it was defense that was the Spurs’ calling card, but San Antonio hasn’t had the personnel to be that same type of defensive team this season.
However, with Derrick White back, and in their two wins back home, the defense has seen marked improvement.
“We’re hoping that we’re going to get consistent with it down the stretch here because when we do play defense, we’re a pretty good team,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “We can score the basketball, but we have to make stops, and tonight we were able to do that.”
With Paul George out of the lineup, the Spurs were able to focus their defensive efforts on Russell Westbrook, giving White the assignment. They limited Westbrook to 19 points, and LaMarcus Aldridge led the offensive charge for San Antonio with 27 points.
Spurs Quick Links: Spurs Starting Lineup, Spurs Roster, Spurs Depth Chart, Spurs Injuries, Spurs News, Spurs Schedule
Denver Nuggets at San Antonio Spurs Betting Odds
The Spurs are slim one-point favorites to win tonight at home. San Antonio is 24-7 at the AT&T Center and 23-11 as the favorite. Denver is 15-14 on the road and 7-8 as the underdog.
The over/under is 230 points and the Spurs are -120 on the moneyline after opening at -115.
Odds & Line Movement Links: San Antonio Spurs vs. Denver Nuggets, Vegas Odds (All NBA Games Today)
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