Aldridge added 10 rebounds and Leonard had six rebounds and five assists for San Antonio, which has won six straight. The Pelicans made it tough for the Spurs to score inside for the entire game, but the Pelicans couldn’t keep backup point guard Patty Mills from making a clutch 3-pointer with 1:21 remaining that extended the Spurs’ lead to 91-86.
Advertisement
There is a creeping sense of inevitability with the San Antonio Spurs, who with characteristic calm pocketed their 52nd victory in 61 games Thursday, using a deadly efficient 16-2 closing run to defeat the New Orleans Pelicans 94-86 at the Smoothie King Center.
Sounds fishy, Pop: Ginobili said before the game that he expects to be back next week and doctors have cleared him to play after testicular surgery, the result of a knee to the groin from New Orleans’ Ryan Anderson on February 3.
Cousins, who had 22 points, 13 rebounds and five assists, was 13 years old the last time the Kings won on Dallas’ home floor February 27, 2003.
LaMarcus Aldridge scored 23 points with 10 rebounds, three assists and two turnovers in 35 minutes against the Pistons on Wednesday.
“When they told me it was going to take a month, month and a half – unbelievable”, Ginobili said. “I’m just playing in the flow of the game”. Davis got much needed help from Eric Gordon who seemed to be the thorn in the Spurs side as he added 23. “We have a bigger picture in mind and the guys are focused on that”.
The Argentine addressed the media just before San Antonio defeated Detroit 97-81 in its first home game following its annual monthlong Rodeo Road Trip. This is why throughout the years under the watch of Gregg Popovich, they’ve been so successful.
Aldridge, Duncan and Parker knocked down a series of mid-range jumpers in scoring four points each in a 12-2 run beginning early in the third quarter. He was coming off a miserable 5-of-20 shooting performance for 14 points on Wednesday night against Houston.
A dunk by Enes Kanter gave the Thunder a 93-77 lead with 7:26 left, but the Clippers went on a 24-4 surge to take the lead.
“It’s something that’s not been talked about in our locker room and I haven’t really been paying attention because I try to stay locked in to what we are doing”, Aldridge said. Pau Gasol had 12 points and Doug McDermott was the only other Bulls player in double figures with 11.
“San Antonio plays great defense but we were very individual on offense in the second half”, Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said.
Advertisement
The Pistons degenerated into a lot of one-on-one basketball that played right into the hands of the league’s best defensive team. “(We) had some good looks down the stretch and missed them but mainly we just have to come up with stops especially late in the game”.
