Host Denver Nuggets beat San Antonio Spurs for playoffs

Nikola Jokic had 20 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists, Jamal Murray finished with 14 points, 11 assists and six rebounds, and the host Denver Nuggets beat the San Antonio Spurs 113-85 on Wednesday night. Monte Morris and Malik Beasley scored 19 points apiece, and Gary Harris and Will Barton scored 11 each for Denver. The Nuggets moved closer to clinching home-court advantage for at least the first round of the playoffs.

Denver (52-26) snapped a two-game skid and improved to 11-1 on the second night of back-to-back games. Rookie Lonnie Walker IV had a career-high 16 and LaMarcus Aldridge also scored 16 for the Spurs, who played most of the game without head coach Gregg Popovich after he was ejected 63 seconds into the game.

Popovich called a timeout after Murray's dunk gave Denver a 5-0 lead. He immediately started talking to official Mark Ayotte, who hit him with a technical. Popovich kept talking as he followed Ayotte and then was hit with a second technical. It was the second time in three games Popovich has been ejected. He also got tossed against Sacramento on Sunday.

Assistant Ettore Messina coached the team the rest of the game but couldn't lead the Spurs to a win. Denver took control in the second quarter. Jokic had a three-point play and Murray and Beasley sank 3-pointers in a 9-1 run that pushed the lead to 37-25 early in the period.

Morris scored seven straight Nuggets points and Harris had a basket to make it 52-35 with 5:20 left in the first half. Denver finished the second quarter strong and led 61-43 at halftime. The Nuggets, who struggled in the second half of their previous two home games, started the third by missing five straight shots before Jokic hit a short jumper. Denver continued to build on the lead in the third quarter and was up 86-64 heading into the fourth. San Antonio (45-34) trailed by as many as 30 points.

(With inputs from agencies.)