San Antone: Seeking Nine Rings

KCP hit an absolute dagger to win the game. All too familiar, a clash for gritty basketball enthusiasts got underway in San Antonio tonight, with the Spurs battling the tenacious Grizzlies down to the wire, unable to pull away until Kentavious Caldwell-Pope's fast-break 3PTer bested Memphis, putting the Spurs at 14-3 on the season now. Brandon Ingram continues to fall into a groove with his new team, scoring 27 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists with 3 steals and 3 blocks in a masterful exhibit. Dejounte Murray excelled, with 19 points. KCP finished with 17 points. Big man Kyle O'Quinn hoisted down 10 rebounds for the Spurs, despite the Grizzlies winning the boards overall, 48-36. Unlike Caldwell-Pope, Memphis went 0-6 from long range. In the loss, Mike Conley had 20 points with 11 assists. Jonas Valanciunas had 14 points, 12 rebounds with a steal and Jaren Jackson Jr. had 11 points with 14 rebounds.

Jrue Holiday's squad came up short. As the Anthony Davis controversy drags on, Jrue Holiday had to take up the mantle in N'awlins and his team ultimately came up short. They did manage to spark a run and be competitive until midway through the third quarter, but the Spurs were simply too strong. San Antonio opened the game on a 14-2 run, but struggled to score from that point forward, allowing the Pelicans back into things. It took Patty Mills going off to start the 3rd Quarter, finishing with 18 points, and a surprise spark from Iman Shumpert (23 points, 5 three-pointers) to turn it out. Brandon Ingram had a solid 22 points, sitting out the 4th Quarter as Shump & Mills reclaimed a 20-PT advantage for the champs, especially Iman as he made back-to-back-to-back 3PTers, giving the Spurs the 91-71 advantage in the Big Easy, after a 38-22 third quarter showing. The Spurs only had four turnovers, compared to fourteen by New Orleans. The Pelicans fought hard early, earn...

The talent of Steph Curry wasn't enough tonight. The best of the west blew the roof off the AT&T Center tonight, as Kevin Durant dunked the ball past Brandon Ingram on the first possession. KD looked to be on a mission early, but ultimately wound up having a chilly performance. Durant finished with 28 points, 11 rebounds on 14/27, notably 0-4 from deep. Meanwhile, Steph Curry never gave up hope for the comeback spoiler, aided by the Warriors rebound dominance of 39-30, lighting up the Spurs with 43 points, knocking down six 3PTers. He shot 16/25, which included clutch scoop layups, never letting the Texas crowd relax tonight. A potent combination of scoring and resistance by San Antonio proved to be the deciding factor in this game, as Durant and Curry (and Klay Thompson: 11 points, 5/13, 1/5 3PT, 4 turnovers) had the ball ripped away from them in the second half. Punishing the Warriors, the Spurs dunked it home and excelled at ball movement. Excitingly, both teams ex...

Beverley had a tough night. The Clippers came out flat and were ultimately stomped by the visiting Spurs tonight, a blowout with a difference that approached forty at one point. The Spurs led 41-27 after a pair of 10-2 runs, following it up with a 67-44 lead at the half. San Antone poured it on, winning the second 36-20, as the Clippers already had 13 turnovers as a unit. After three quarters, the Spurs led 97-66. Off the bench, bright spots were Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (17 points, five 3PTers, 4 steals) and Iman Shumpert (14 points, 3/5 3PT). The Spurs now move to 11-3, facing the 12-5 Warriors next. The Rest: Dejounte Murray scored 18 points with 6 assists, 2 steals Avery Bradley & Kyle O'Quinn combined for 24 points Skal Labissiere notched 9 points, 7 rebounds Joakim Noah & Rudy Gay combined for 18 Mario Chalmers got some burn for 9 points Brandon Ingram got some much-deserved rest For LA: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 15 points with 8 assists Luc M...

The Suns came ready to play, hosting the champions in the valley of the sun. Phoenix led 71-57, and unlike in Sac-Town, the Spurs were unable to pull off a comeback victory. Patty Mills even tried to repeat history with a 3rd Quarter self-surge, making it 69-76 quickly into a shootout down the stretch. Looking back, the Spurs missed four free throws, kicking themselves. The play of the game belonged to Devin Booker, bombing a 3PTer on the wing after Phoenix called timeout with under .30s left to play. Brandon Ingram (30 points, 3 steals) would try a jumper of his own, but misfired to the buzzer's tune. In the loss, Dejounte Murray had another strong showing: 21 points, 10 assists, 3 steals. Patty cooled off with 13 points. Joakim Noah showed signs of life with 12 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blocks. Kyle O'Quinn had 10 points, 2 steals with 1 block. Skal Labissiere gave 9 points, 6 rebounds, but Avery Bradley went 3/8 on the night. For the Suns, star attraction Booker had 3...

Patty Mills sparked this comeback for the Spurs. Patty Mills was simply electric in this comeback victory, making seven 3PTers, all in the second half of action in a game that had the Kings up by twenty points in the second quarter. Tony Parker burned his old team during the big run: scoring fifteen points. Why? The Spurs interior defense was "atrocious", as Coach Pop called it at halftime. Sac-Town's Achilles heel would be seven misses at the free throw line, ultimately losing by four. The best weapon for San Antone was the 3PT shot, making 22 overall in the win. The comeback was impressive after Dejounte Murray ran into foul trouble in the first half, persevering to hit two clutch lay-ins to win the game. For the Spurs: Brandon Ingram - 29 points, 2 steals, 1 block, 5/6 3PT, 11/18 FG Dejounte Murray - 29 points, 9 assists, 3 steals, 4/7 3PT *Player of the Game* Patty Mills - 25 points, including a 4-PT play to take a 86-85 lead in 4th Skal Labissiere - 19 po...

Murray had a key block on Harden to ice the victory. No love was lost between these two proud Texas squads, as James Harden splashed in a cool thirty points by halftime. Luckily, the "Beard" cooled off and finished with ten more, going 13-27, with 6 assists and 3 steals. Skal Labissiere was propped into the starting lineup as Rudy Gay continues to struggle this season, the Spurs defense tight on Houston's talented shooters early, especially Avery Bradley on Eric Gordon and Kawh -- Brandon Ingram now tasked with guarding Harden. The former Laker star did well, finishing 32 points, 2 blocks and 2 steals, notching 6 daggers from long range with clutch follow-through. Ingram hit a three to end a turbulent first period, 29-26. The Rockets seized momentum next, however, ending the half up 63-54. It was not to last, as the Spurs trademark 3rd Quarter response ensued, winning it 34-24 and making the score 68-67, prompting Coach D'Antoni to call timeout for Houston. B...

The Spurs came together and delivered a defensive statement to the Miami Heat, despite Goran Dragic's 29 points with 10 assists. The attention to detail and relentless energy display by the Spurs awarded them a 30-point advantage after the third quarter, 76-53. Before then, the Heat (rocking new wavy 80s flashy pink uniforms) made a couple of runs. Brandon Ingram put the onus on himself after a bad home game against the Magic, getting hot early and showing off his stroke from long range. The Duke forward notched 25 points in this road victory, as San Antone banged in 18 three-pointers. Patty Mills did a do-over of the home loss minus the "L", scoring another 28 points on two less long-shots, carving up the heat inside and from mid-range. Avery Bradley hounded Dwayne Wade on his farewell tour all game long, finishing with 17 points. "Flash" scored some, but was a far cry from Hassan Whiteside's 20 points and 17 rebounds. Josh Richardson helped the home te...

The Magic played spoiler tonight in Texas. An inevitability, the Spurs lost at home tonight for the first time in an 82-game season, having been one of the best home win/loss teams over the last decade. Patty Mills did everything he could to keep the Spurs in the mix, knocking down 9 three-point bombs (28 points), but the defending champions also beat themselves tonight with sixteen brutal turnovers and allowing the other team to go up early. The Magic made them pay, with Nikola Vucevic's 16 point-10 rebound performance and Jonathan Isaac's 21 points. Seven other Magic players notched double-digits in a cohesive assault. Brandon Ingram's foul trouble nailed the coffin tonight, finishing with 18 points (3 fouls in the 1st Quarter). The Spurs rallied to tie the game, but the Magic kept regaining it. Behind Mills and Ingram, Avery Bradley had 19 points and Dejounte Murray woke up with 19 also. As the time clock trickled down to zero, the fate became clear to the bummed...