Tag: Toronto

Game rewind: ‘Fantastic’ bench leads victory over Hawks

The Spurs’ bench again stepped  up in a big way when it was most needed Wednesday night.

After the starters struggled to hold a lead early into the second half, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich didn’t hesitate to pull them.

“Our bench was fantastic,” Popovich said. “A number of people came into the game and played good solid basketball both at the defensive and offensive ends. I was really pleased with the bench.”

That effort helped boost the Spurs to a convincing 105-83 victory over Atlanta, which came into the game as one of the league’s hottest teams.

Here’s how the Spurs claimed their ninth home victory in 10 games. 

Game analysis: A balanced attack featuring five players in double figures and eight with at least eight points swarmed the Hawks and cruised to an easy victory.

Where the game was won: After Atlanta had pulled within 70-61 on Joe Johnson’s 20-footer with 2:03 left in the third quarter, the Spurs erupted on a 20-6 surge to put the game away. DeJuan Blair scored the last five points of the third quarter and capped the run with hoop to give the Spurs a commanding 90-67 advantage with 7:02 left in the game.

Bring on the bench: The Spurs’ bench was instrumental in charging past Atlanta, outscoring the Hawks 27-11 in the first half and 51-27 in the game.

Player of the game I: Matt Bonner had a couple of defensive busts that caused Popovich to go apoplextic, but it was hard to argue with his shooting. He hit 5 of 7 3-pointers en route to a 17-point effort that matched his season high.

Player of the game II: It was another strong game for Tiago Splitter who produced 16 points on 5 for 6 shooting, grabbed eight rebounds and dealt out two assists. Splitter has notched a career-best five consecutive double-figure games as his confidence in the Spurs’ rotation is soaring.

Player of the game III:  Maybe it was fatigue from all of the recent minutes, but Tony Parker had trouble sticking with Atlanta guard Jeff Teague. The second-year Wake Forest product went for a game-high 20 points as he sliced through the middle of the Spurs’ defense. Teague also added five rebounds — all in the first half — and produced a game-high three steals as he was a pest for the Spurs  for most of the game.

Most unsung: The Spurs needed some kind of lift at the point as Parker struggled early in the game. They got one from Cory Joseph, who had his strongest game with the team with eight points, four assists, a steal and a blocked shot in 18 minutes.

Did you notice: For the second straight game, the Spurs were burned by a missed call on an offensive goaltending. Blair’s basket with 7:37 left in the game was wiped out when officials thought he interfered  with the ball in the cylinder. Television replays indicated otherwise. And several plays later, lead official Zach Zarba apologized to Popovich along the sidelines for the blown call.  

Did you notice II: The two teams combined to shoot only 25 foul shots and were whistled for 33 fouls between them. That led to the game being played in 2 hours.

Did you notice III: Local product Ivan Johnson of Fox Tech High School and Cal State-San Bernardino had a big game for the Hawks. The rookie notched eight points, three rebounds and two assists in 21 minutes — most of any non-starter for the Hawks.

Stat of the game: The Spurs shot 51.2 percent for the game, becoming the first Atlanta opponent to top 50 percent this season.   

Stat of the game II: The Spurs’ perimeter game was solid with 11 3-pointers, including five from Bonner and two apiece from Richard Jefferson, Danny Green and Parker. It was the Spurs’ second most 3-pointers of the season, behind only the 16 they scored against Dallas on Jan. 5. The Spurs shot 47.8 percent from 3-point territory, marking the fifth straight game they have improved their 3-point percentage from the previous game.

Stat of the game III: The Spurs piled up a season-high 29 assists. But the most impressive part  of that that was that 10 of  the 12 players in San Antonio’s lineup accounted for at least one assist in the game.

Stat of the game IV: Thanks to strong performances from Blair and Splitter, the Spurs dominated the game inside with a 52-34 edge in points in the paint. It was tied for their second highest differential of the season.  

Weird stat of the game: The Spurs’ shooting improved in every quarter of the game. They shot 47.4 percent from the field in the first quarter, 50 percent in the second quarter, 52.4 percent in the third quarter and 55 percent in the fourth quarter.

Weird stat of the game II: The Spurs again were outrejected by their opponents with three blocked shots and eight of their shots blocked. During the last three games, the Spurs have blocked six shots and had 24 shots blocked.

Best plus/minus scores: Splitter was plus-27, Green was plus-19 and Joseph was plus-15.

Worst plus/minus scores: Tim Duncan was minus-4.

Quote of the game: “My instantaneous creativity is nonexistent,” Bonner, describing how he was hung up after attempting an awkward bank shot in the third quarter when he appeared to be looking for a teammate for a pass.

How the schedule stacks up: The Spurs have the day off  before starting a three-game road trip with games Friday at Minnesota, Sunday at Dallas and Monday in Memphis. Atlanta continues a five-game road trip with trips Friday to Detroit, Sunday to New Orleans and Tuesday to Toronto.

Injuries: Manu Ginobili missed his 14th game (Spurs record 9-5) after undergoing surgery for a fractured fifth left metacarpal.  T.J. Ford missed his nine game (Spurs record 6-3) with a torn left hamstring. Atlanta guard Kirk Hinrich (left shoulder injury) returned for his first game of the season. Al Horford (torn left pectoral muscle) missed Wednesday’s game.

Bargnani returns with S&D effort in Raptors’ victory

Andrea Bargnani made the most of his return to the lineup Tuesday night.

It helped the Toronto Raptors bust several streaks along the way.

Bargnani scored 27 of his game-high 36 points in the second half to help the Raptors snap an eight-game losing streak with a 99-96 victory over Phoenix.

It was his first game back after missing the Raptors’ last six games with a left calf strain.

That return helped explain a slow start that turned around when he erupted for 18 points in the third quarter.

“I didn’t do anything different from the first quarter because I was pretty aggressive in the first quarter too, I just didn’t score,” Bargnani told the Associated Press. “Jose (Calderon) told me to shoot from the outside because I was just driving the ball and everybody was waiting for me. They found me open and they went in. It was all good.”

It certainly was for the Raptors, who claimed their first victory over the Suns in eight years.

And it was for Bargnani, who hit all 12 foul shots included two critical ones with 22.9 seconds left to seal the victory.

“Andrea coming back makes everything easier for everbody else,” Toronto coach Dwane Casey told  the AP. “He is kind of the hub for everybody to play off of.”

STUDS

Toronto F Andrea Bargnani: Returned to the lineup for the first time in two weeks with 36 points and six rebounds and was plus-1 in the Raptors’ victory over  the Suns. It helped snap Toronto’s eight-game losing streak.

Miami F Chris Bosh: Scored 35 points and grabbed seven rebounds and was plus-5 in the Heat’s victory over the Cavaliers.

Orlando F Ryan Anderson: Went for 24 points, including five 3-pointers, grabbed eight rebounds and was plus-11 in the Magic’s victory at Indiana.

New York C Tyson Chandler: Notched 20 points and 17 rebounds in only 29 minutes and was plus-13 in the Knicks’ victory at the Bobcats.

Portland C Marcus Camby: Scored only three points, but was a force inside with 22 rebounds, five blocked shots and was a game-best plus-29 in the Trail Blazers’ victory over the Grizzlies.

DUDS

New York F Carmelo Anthony: Produced a career-low one point in 30 minutes on 0-for-7 shooting in the Knicks’ victory over the Bobcats.

Miami F LeBron James: Didn’t get up for his old teammates as much as usual as he was 8 for 21 from the field with five turnovers in the Heat’s victory over  the Cavaliers.

Charlotte G Kemba Walker: Went 7 for 17 from the field with four turnovers and was minus-23 in the Bobcats’ loss to the Knicks. 

Indiana C Roy Hibbert: His recent broken nose must have affected his shooting form as he clanked through a 5-for-16 effort with two turnovers and was minus-19 in the Pacers’ loss to the Magic.

Charlotte F Tyrus Thomas: Went 1 for 9 from the field with three turnovers and was minus-16 in the Bobcats’ loss to the Knicks.

Spurs notebook: Bad shooting doesn’t concern Duncan

MINNEAPOLIS — Spurs captain Tim Duncan seemed amused Saturday to learn about Raptors coach Dwane Casey’s new motivational tool. Casey had a 1,300-pound boulder placed in the locker room at Air Canada Centre to reinforce a “pound the rock” theme in his first season as Toronto’s coach.

Duncan adopted Gregg Popovich’s hammer-the-rock philosophy as a rookie, and he continues to lean on it through a tough start to his season. His playing time has been limited through the first four games for a variety of reasons: three first-quarter fouls in the season opener and Popovich’s decision to sit him during the second half in Houston on Thursday. Playing time aside, Duncan also has struggled with his shot.

Heading into tonight’s game at Minnesota, Duncan has made only 14 of 41 shots (34.2 percent). A career 50.8 percent shooter, Duncan said there is little to do but keep firing away until his accuracy returns.

“I finally got one to drop late,” he said of his 4-of-13 shooting against the Jazz on Saturday. “I’m getting just about every shot I want. I just can’t seem to put them in the hole.

“Hopefully, down the stretch here in the next couple of games, I can finally get some to go.”

SHORT-TIMERS: Popovich’s plan to limit the playing time of his veteran players — especially the Big Three of 35-year-old Duncan, 34-year-old Manu Ginobili and 29-year-old Tony Parker — is off to a good start.

Richard Jefferson’s average of 29.0 minutes per game is tops among all players. Of the Big Three, Parker’s 28.8 minutes per game is tops. Ginobili averages only 25.8 minutes per game and Duncan just 22.3, less than backup center-forward Tiago Splitter’s 24.8.

Ten Spurs average at least 14.8 minutes per game as Popovich has gone to his bench early and often, mindful of the grind of 66 games in 120 days.

Except for the opener, when Duncan left early with three fouls, Jefferson has been the first starter to come out, replaced each time by rookie Kawhi Leonard. He has been getting significant time with the second unit, even late in games.

“Over the course of 10-plus seasons, I’ve played 42 minutes a night (but I’ve also) played 31 minutes a night,” Jefferson said. “It doesn’t really matter. It’s a matter of getting in that group.

“The second unit is without Manu and Tony and Tim, so I’m able to get a few more looks, a few more shots. I feel comfortable in that group. But in whatever Pop needs, whatever position he puts me in, I’m going to try my best.”

THREE-FICIENCY: With the notable exception of the loss in Houston, the Spurs have been remarkably efficient from long range. Their 10-for-16 shooting beyond the arc in the victory over Utah pushed their season percentage to 37.6. Without their 2-for-17 performance against the Rockets, they are 30 for 68 (44.1 percent).

Ginobili made his first five 3-pointers against the Jazz. Utah’s C.J. Miles got a finger on his sixth attempt, deflecting it enough that it fell short of the rim.

“First two games I felt pretty good, but in Houston I couldn’t make one,” Ginobili said. “(Saturday) it felt great. I’m not the kind of shooter who will go 5 for 5. It was different (Saturday). We moved the ball. I didn’t force the shots. I was open, and I made them.”