updated 9:43 a.m. ET May 3, 2007

SAN ANTONIO - The San Antonio Spurs don’t have to go back to Denver. They’re headed to the Western Conference semifinals.

With Michael Finley leading the way from behind the 3-point line, the Spurs beat the Denver Nuggets 93-78 on Wednesday night to win their first-round series in five games.

After losing the opening game at home, the Spurs won four straight, and they will have three days’ rest before opening the second round at Phoenix on Sunday. The Suns beat the Los Angeles Lakers 119-110 in Game 5 on Wednesday night.

Finley set a San Antonio playoff record with eight 3-pointers and finished with 26 points.

“He was fantastic. He came out and served it up well. And he just kept shooting,” said Robert Horry, who hit a big 3 late in the Spurs’ Game 4 victory. “That’s the one thing about it ... once you get hot, keep shooting until you miss, and he didn’t miss.”

It was also a career-best in 3s for Finley, who went 8-of-9 from 3-point range.

Spurs coach Gregg Popovich called Finley’s performance “ridiculous.”

“To be realistic, my career is coming to an end in a couple of years or so. So I’m enjoying the moment,” said the 34-year-old Finley, who signed with the Spurs in September 2005 and is in his 12th NBA season. “I’m blessed to be playing with some tremendous basketball players, guys like Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and Tim Duncan. Those guys attract a lot of attention and I’m just out there doing my job and knocking down shots off of things they create for me.”

Tim Duncan had 23 points and 12 rebounds and Tony Parker added 16 points and 10 assists for the third-seeded Spurs, who had a virtual repeat of 2005, when they lost Game 1 at home before winning the next four to eliminate Denver.

“It turned out that way with the series being over 4-1, but as for the level of play, I can’t really say they’re a better team than us,” Denver’s Marcus Camby said. “Each game was close and could have been flip-flopped to our advantage. I still feel confident in our team and what we can build here.”

Allen Iverson struggled from the field for his fourth straight game for the Nuggets after scoring 31 points in Game 1. He was 6-of-22 from the field and had 21 points Wednesday, 10 in the fourth quarter.

Sixth-seeded Denver traded for Iverson in December to create an All-Star duo with Carmelo Anthony.

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“I felt like this was the worst playoff series that I’ve played in my career,” Iverson said. “It was kind of frustrating — coming into a new situation, wanting to be the one that gets this team over the hump, get them out of the first round. And to play like I’m not capable of playing is just frustrating.

“They were a better team than us this series,” Iverson said. “We tried to stay in the game. They showed why they were a championship-caliber team.”

Denver scored 30 points in the second half — 11 in the third quarter.

“I thought the 11 points in the third quarter just kind of put a heavy weight on our shoulders,” Denver coach George Karl said. “When the dam broke, it broke hard.”

Anthony had 21 points, while Steve Blake had 12 and Nene added 10. Camby, the NBA Defensive Player of the Year, had 19 rebounds.

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