Smith scored seven points in 88 seconds midway through the fourth quarter, lifting the surging Spurs to a 102-93 victory over the Denver Nuggets, who lost for the first time under Mike Evans.
The Spurs took the lead for good with 9 1/2 minutes to go and were nursing an 83-80 advantage when Smith came alive. The reserve guard hit a jumper with 7:13 to play and answered Raef LaFrentz's basket with a 3-pointer, making it 88-82.
 Mr. Double-Double, Tim Duncan, was at it again, notching his league-leading 19th. William R. Sallaz NBAE/Getty Images |
Known as "Spider" for his long arms, Smith turned to defense. A 3-pointer by Nick Van Exel pulled the Nuggets within 90-85, but Smith blocked a pair of Van Exel's shots on the next possession and Denver got no closer than four points thereafter.
"I had to play the best `D' I could," Smith said. "Teams are playing us close. They are gunning for us."
A 1997 first-round pick of Miami who was waived two years later by the Los Angeles Clippers, Smith played his way back to the NBA through the CBA and Italy. This was the second time this season he victimized an opponent with a hot fourth quarter, also burning Philadelphia with 13 points in the final period of a win on December 7.
"I have to step up and make some shots sometimes," Smith said. "That's what it's all about, buckling down in the fourth."
Tim Duncan had 24 points, 16 rebounds and five blocks for the Spurs, whose winning streak is a season high. They won seven in a row from November 6-23.
Smith scored nine points and was not the only one to benefit from Denver's double-teaming of Duncan. Reserve guards Antonio Daniels and Terry Porter scored 16 and 13 points, respectively.
"Terry, Antonio and Charles hit some big shots and really helped us win the game in the end," Duncan said.
"What really hurt was having to double-team Duncan and allowing Charles Smith to hit some big shots," said Evans, who dropped to 2-1 since stepping in for coach Dan Issel, who was suspended four games by the team for making a racial remark toward a fan.
Van Exel had 25 points and 15 assists for the Nuggets, who were just 4-of-5 from the line, tying team records for fewest free throws made and attempted.
"That's crazy, but if they shoot a whole lot of jump shots, we're going to play defense and contest shots," Duncan said. "Obviously, we went to the basket more."
That was not necessarily the case. Denver was 7-of-28 from the arc but held a 42-40 edge in points in the paint.
"Even though there was a 35-5 free-throw discrepancy in their favor, we outscored them 42-40 in the paint. How do you figure that?" Evans asked.
"We had a chance to win," Van Exel added. "If you look at the points in the paint, it was just about even."
Denver's last lead was 76-75 with 9:45 to play on a basket by former Spur Avery Johnson, who played just nine minutes. A 3-pointer by Daniels gave San Antonio the lead for good.
A short jumper by Van Exel pulled the Nuggets within 93-89 with 2:51 to play, and Smith missed a 3-pointer. But George McCloud misfired on a 3-pointer and Duncan scored before Daniels made a layup for a 97-89 lead with 1:20 remaining.
"This team really got up for us tonight," Duncan said. "They all played well, especially Nick. He got his points, assists and just basically led his team on the court."
"They played with a lot of aggression and a lot of emotion," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "We didn't match that. We were able to win the game with pretty good defense in the fourth quarter. We finally brought some energy in the fourth and executed well."
David Robinson scored 13 points and Bruce Bowen added 10 for the Spurs, who shot 49 percent (34-of-70) from the field and made 27-of-35 free throws.
Voshon Lenard scored 24 points and LaFrentz added 20 for the Nuggets, who shot 41 percent (41-of-99). Shawnelle Scott grabbed 12 rebounds.
"We knew it would be tough tonight," Van Exel said. "I thought we played pretty well. No moral victories, though."
Duncan and Robinson scored 12 points each in the first half to offset Van Exel's 18 and give the Spurs a 49-45 lead. Lenard scored 14 in the third quarter as the Nuggets took a 72-71 lead into the final period.