San Antonio Spurs take down New Orleans Hornets 109 - 84
The San Antonio Spurs' Big Three came together to put the game away for good at the AT&T Center by defeating the New Orleans Hornets, 109 – 84.
How the Game was Won
Tony Parker, still almost unstoppable, led the Spurs with 19 points and 6 assists. Matt Bonner came off the bench for 14 points and Richard Jefferson posted 13. Tim Duncan, Grant Hill, and Gary Neal were the Spurs’ trio with 11
points each, hitting some big shots in the final minutes to cement the victory over a feisty Orleans’s squad.
Chris Paul scored a team-high 16 points for the Hornets in their defeat, which also saw starters Trevor Ariza (13 points) and David West (13 points) reach double figures.
Quarter-wise Game Story
An incredibly tight game in which the Hornet had a rough and tough time in the court, the Spurs fantastically headed all four quarters. The Hornets were literally helpless in front of the sizzling Spurs - limiting turnovers, making
shots in the second quarter, and playing tenacious defense.
“You can only reach into that bag so many times, and we’ve done it five times already,” “Eventually it will catch up to us,” said Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich.
Even though the Hornets pushed to five late in the first quarter, the game was truly never in doubt. In the first quarter, the Spurs were in full control, and fantastically built their lead, taking a 43-23 lead into the second.
The Spurs did not play well offensively in the first quarter, but once again, they found a way.
In the second quarter, the Spurs got it going offensively, and used that to gradually build up a 27-point lead at the half, scoring 34 points in the second quarter, all the while holding Cleveland to 41 in the entire half.
In the third, the Spurs continued to up their lead, eventually capping out at 22 points, extending their lead to 31 points (90 – 59) when the buzzer sounded.
The Hornets fought hard to make the score a respectable one, outscoring the Spurs 25-19 in the fourth to show up only 6 down when the buzzer sounded.
Straight Shooting
It was a one-sided ugly game, but a 25-point win is exactly what the Spurs needed. The primary reason the Spurs pulled this one off at such a significant margin was the shooting. The Spurs' 3-point shooters took control of this
game. San Antonio finished 11-for-22 from long range, and that puts the Spurs (shooting a .404 percentage) past the Lakers (.400) for the league lead.
Match Climax
The Spurs had a nine-point lead in the opening minute of the second quarter, but what happened over the next two and half minutes allowed the Spurs to bag the game. They went 4 for 4 from the 3-point line in that span -- two of
them from Bonner -- and blew open the nine-point game to a 21-point advantage with just less than nine minutes before halftime.
Hornets vs. Stomach Bug
It is a known fact that a basketball player should eat healthy not just for the game but for his health in general. However, eating too much without taking care of one’s stomach capacity can create some serious problems - - like
the way it happened to the Hornets’ players.
The Stomach Bug is making its way through the Hornets’ locker room. Although West was back into the team after been irritated by the stomach disease, DJ Mbenga missed the game because of the same symptoms.
West was the leading scorer for his team in his previous match against the Bobcats but this time he just added 13 - -thanks to the Stomach Bug! He must better consult a doctor this time in order to help his team to get back into
the win column.
Quote of the Game
"I think they just had a bad night, and it coincided with us having a very good night." - - Gregg Popovich (Spurs’ Coach)
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