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The defense was great for about 42 minutes and the offense was pretty good all game as the Spurs put this one away shortly after halftime.
The Spurs started the game off on a tear, grabbing an 11-2 lead three or four minutes into the game, but then turnovers happened (11 in the first half) and by the end of the quarter the Kings held a 27-26 lead. A shut-down second-quarter performance by the Silver and Black held Sacramento to just 11 points and the Spurs led by 16 at the half, 54-38.
The Spurs extended the lead to 23 four minutes into the third and that just about put the game away - the Kings would only trim the lead to less than 20 for about a minute and the Spurs pushed the lead over 30 at times.
It's the Kings, but the dominant fashion by which the Spurs dispatched them is encouraging from a SA fan's perspective.
Your Spurs improve to 37-23 but remain mired in the seventh seed for the moment.
Notes:
- The starting small forwards for the two teams had drastically different nights. Kawhi Leonard got the best of Rudy Gay on both ends, with Whi finishing with a game-high 21 points on 9-of-11 shooting while Gay struggled and finished with 10 points on 4-of-16 shooting.
- Tim Duncan was whistled for five fouls in his 19 minutes on the floor. That's the most fouls Timmy has picked up in less than 20 minutes in his career. He also moved into ninth on the all-time rebounding list.
- Tony Parker looked good and finished with a nice 19-points on 14 shots. I say this after every good Tony performance, but let's hope he can build off this one.
- This is just the fourth time this season that the Spurs have won a game by 24 or more points, but their second in their last two games. They had 11 such wins last season. Cautious optimism.
- The three ball fell at a good clip for the Spurs. The looks have been there this season, let's hope the team can knock them down like they did on Wednesday.
Up Next:
The Spurs continue their six-game home-stand when they host the Nuggets, who are more interested in their offseason vacation than in winning games at this point.