Experience counts in the NBA playoffs, and the San Antonio Spurs are taking advantage. They won their first-round opener versus the Denver Nuggets on Saturday, 101-96 as 6-point road dogs. After they play Game 2 on Tuesday, the series will shift to Texas for Game 3 on Thursday. NBA-TV provides the coverage at 9 PM ET.

This is Denver’s first trip to the playoffs since 2013, while the Spurs have made the postseason every year since 1998 – their first full season under head coach Gregg Popovich. However, it was bad luck more than rookie nerves that sunk the Nuggets in Game 1. They missed an unusually large number of open shots, including from 3-point range, where Denver finished 6-for-28 on the day. The Spurs shot 7-for-15 from downtown.

f the Nuggets don’t bounce back in Game 2, they’ll be in big trouble heading to San Antonio. Denver’s home-court advantage in the thin Mile High air is substantial; they went 25-16 ATS at the Pepsi Center during the regular season, compared to 17-24 ATS on the road. The Spurs also enjoyed their home cooking at 24-17 ATS, while virtually breaking even at 19-20-2 ATS away from the AT&T Center.