Tony Parker stars as San Antonio Spurs knock over the Philadelphia 76ers 93-76: NBA Recap
On a night when Greg Popovich gave a game off to veteran centre Tim Duncan, the resurgent San Antonio Spurs romped to a 93-76 win over the Andre Iguodala – less Philadelphia 76ers.
All the Spurs starters scored in double figures, with Tony Parker leading the way on his return from injury. The point guard scored 21 points and dished out seven assist.
He was ably assisted by DeJuan Blair, who started in place of Duncan. Blair ended with match figures of 19 points and 6 boards while Kawhi Leonard had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Matt Bonner also scored 10 on
a 3-for-5 effort from downtown while Manu Ginobili finished off with 11 points, 5 assists and 2 blocks.
The Sixers failed to maintain pace with the Spurs as their leading scorers Lou Williams and Jrue Holiday struggled to find their shot. Williams managed only 9 points on an uncharacteristic 4-for-14 while Holiday added only 10 points
on 5-for14 from the floor. Evan Turner also scored 10 for the Sixers, who were led by 14 points and 9 rebounds from Elton Brand and also had an 11 point contribution from Jodie Meeks.
The Spurs forced the Sixers into 21 turnovers and never let their intensity down on the defense.
All that coupled with the absence of the playmaker in chief, Iguodala, resulted in a shaky performance from the Sixers;
"They did speed us up," 76ers coach Doug Collins said. "I'll give their defense credit. They stripped us around the basket, must have been six or seven times. And once it started going south, we couldn't get it stopped."
After an even start to the game, the Spurs got going nearly midway through the first quarter and with the scores at 12 apiece, they raced away to a 17-6 run to grab a 29-18 advantage. A Ginobili turnover was however sandwiched
by two jumpers from Thaddeus Young, allowing the Sixers to make it 22-29 after one.
Philadelphia carried the momentum in the second quarter, starting it with a 12 – 0 run to convert a seven point deficit into a 34-29 lead. After Stephen Jackson split a pair of free throws on the next Spurs possession, Young dunked
the ball through the cylinder to make it a six point game, but San Antonio fired right back with a 10-nothing burst and went on to take a 52-49 lead at the end of the first half.
The Sixers remained in the hunt early in the third, but a 8-2 run at the centre stage and then eight unanswered points deep, pushed them back. The Spurs finished the third with a 76-65 lead and there was no looking back after that.
The Spurs completely hounded the Sixers in the fourth, forcing them into 4 giveaways and 10 –of-11 missed shots. The defensive pressure resulted in a 12-2 Spurs charge and the game was settled.
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