Popovich gets NBA-record 1,128th win as Spurs beat Nuggets

SAN ANTONIO – Gregg Popovich became the winningest coach with a single franchise in NBA history, leading the San Antonio Spurs to a 121-97 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Saturday night (Sunday in Manila).

Popovich earned his 1,128th victory to pass former Utah coach Jerry Sloan for the mark.

Kawhi Leonard led the Spurs with 19 points in San Antonio's final home game before playing eight games on the road during its annual rodeo road trip. Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker each added 18 points for the Spurs.

Jamal Murray scored 20 points off the bench and Nikola Jokic had 11 in 15 minutes for Denver, which was playing the second game of a back-to-back and fourth in five nights. The arduous schedule seemed to catch up with the Nuggets in the second half. San Antonio opened the third quarter on a 21-7 run.

Ginobili and Parker have been part of 639 of Popovich's wins, and the veterans turned back the clock in the record-setting win. The 39-year-old Ginobili set a season high for points despite sitting out the entire second half, going 4 for 5 on 3-pointers. The only player older than Ginobili to score 18-plus points for the Spurs was Tim Duncan, the final member of the team's vaunted Big Three, who had 21 points against Denver on April 8, 2016.

Parker finished 8 for 8 from the field after scoring just one point in the team's previous game. The 16-year veteran had four straight points midway through the first quarter, including a layup ahead of Jokic after a steal against Jameer Nelson.

Ginobili topped that with 10 points in four minutes and 16 of the team's 18 points in his initial seven minutes.

TIP-INS

Nuggets: F Danilo Gallinari missed his second straight game with a strained left groin. Gallinari is averaging 17.2 points and 34.2 minutes, both team-highs. ... Kenneth Faried had four points and four rebounds, ending his streak of four straight double-doubles. ... Jokic, Faried, Nelson, Wilson Chandler and Gary Harris started for the second time as a unit. They won their initial outing together. ... F Darrell Arthur sat the game out for rest. Arthur missed four straight games with soreness in his lower left leg from Jan. 12-20. ... Denver entered the game third in the league in scoring at 110.4 points per game. ... The Nuggets have lost nine straight in San Antonio. Their last win here was March 4, 2012, in a 99-94 decision.

Spurs: Leonard has scored in double figures in 80 straight games. His previous longest streak was 46 in 2015. . San Antonio has scored 100-plus points in 27 consecutive games, its longest streak since 29 straight in 1988. ... The Spurs finished 3-1 on their four-game homestand. ... San Antonio has 37 alley-oop dunks in 50 games this season after recording 18 all of last season. ... Ginobili's initial 3-pointer against the Nuggets was the 1,400th of his career. His previous season high was 17 points on Dec. 18 against New Orleans.

UP NEXT

Nuggets: Host Dallas on Monday night (Tuesday).

Spurs: At Memphis on Monday night (Tuesday).