Jokic scores 40, outduels Wembanyama and Nuggets top Spurs 136-134 in OT

DENVER (AP) — Nikola Jokic had 40 points, 13 assists and eight rebounds, Christian Braun added 21 points and the Denver Nuggets beat San Antonio 136-134 in overtime Saturday to snap the Spurs’ 11-game winning streak.

Cameron Johnson scored 17, Jamal Murray finished with 15 points and 10 assists and Aaron Gordon scored 15 for the Nuggets.

Gordon scored with 6.2 seconds left in regulation to tie the game, then forced Victor Wembanyama into a miss on the final shot of regulation.

Wembanyama finished with 34 points, 18 rebounds, seven assists and five blocked shots for the Spurs, who lost for only the third time in their last 30 games.

Stephon Castle scored 20 points for San Antonio, while Devin Vassell and Julian Champagnie each scored 18 for the Spurs.

Castle’s three-point play midway through the second quarter put the Spurs up 57-44, that 13-point margin the biggest that they would hold all afternoon.

Wembanyama scored with 9:08 remaining to put San Antonio up 107-96. The Spurs were 48-2 this season in games where they held double-digit leads in the fourth quarter.

They’re 48-3 now — with two of those losses against the Nuggets, who rallied from a 13-point deficit in the fourth to beat San Antonio on March 12.

Denver held San Antonio to 33% shooting the rest of the way, outscoring the Spurs 40-27 in the final 14 minutes of the game including overtime.

Jokic had 16 of his points in those final 14 minutes, while Denver held Wembanyama to 1 for 4 shooting in that span.

Up next

Spurs: Host Philadelphia on Monday.

Nuggets: Host Portland on Monday.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba