Anthony sits again, but Nuggets still beat Spurs

Kenyon Martin scored 27 points and the Denver Nuggets won again without Carmelo Anthony, beating the San Antonio Spurs 103-89 on Sunday.

The NBA's leading scorer missed his fourth consecutive game with a sprained ankle but the Nuggets still bounced back after Oklahoma City pummeled them Friday, ending Denver's eight-game win streak. Anthony could return Monday.

Chauncey Billups scored 25 and J.R Smith had 18 for the Nuggets, who've breezed through the new year so far. Denver went 12-3 in January.

George Hill scored 17 points in place of San Antonio's own injured star, Tony Parker. The point guard sat out for the second game with a left ankle sprain.

Parker's timetable for a return is unknown, but San Antonio will want him back for what comes next: An eight-game, 3 1/2-week road trip that figures to weigh heavily for the underachieving Spurs.

The Spurs will embark for their annual Rodeo Road Trip having squandered a six-game homestand, going 2-4. San Antonio went 8-8 in January and seemed to show that its problems run deeper than just breaking in a slew of new faces.

Defense did the Spurs in again. The Nuggets shot 54 percent from the field and made 9 of 12 from behind the 3-point arc.

Nuggets coach George Karl said he expected Anthony to try to play Monday against Sacramento, when Denver returns home following a three-game road trip. The Nuggets have gone 3-1 without Anthony.

Before the game, Karl said the expected fast pace of the game held Anthony out much as anything. He said Anthony still wasn't comfortable making sharp moves.

Karl was right: The Spurs did push the ball, but the Nuggets ran away by the end. Antonio McDyess hit a 19-foot jumper with 3:24 left to get the Spurs within 87-85, but the Nuggets scored on their last seven possessions.

Tim Duncan had 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Spurs. Manu Ginobili added 14 points.

NOTES: Spurs F Michael Finley played for the first time since Dec. 5, when he injured his left ankle in a loss to Denver the last time the Nuggets were in town. He missed two shots in 6 minutes. ...The Spurs used their 15th different starting lineup, with Hill and Roger Mason Jr. starting in the backcourt together for the first time.