Shorthanded Spurs beat Kings with stunning comeback
San Antonio extend streak to nine games
SAN ANTONIO: The San Antonio Spurs delivered the biggest comeback of the National Basketball Association season on Wednesday with a 114-104 win over the Sacramento Kings to extend their winning streak to nine games.
Coming back from as many as 28 points, the Spurs improved to 50-13 on the season, giving them their 18th straight 50-win season. San Antonio have now won 50 or more games every season since 1997-98, except in the strike-shortened 1998-99 campaign, when they went 37-13.
In 28 years, the Spurs have had just one losing season, when they finished 20-62 in 1996-97.
Manu Ginobili scored a season-high 19 points and David Lee equalled his season-best scoring output with 18 points as the shorthanded Spurs roared from behind in front of a crowd of 18,400 at the AT&T Center.
The Spurs rested star forwards Kawhi Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge and trailed by as many as 28 points in the second quarter before their scorers took over.
“It was a really bad start for us, but once we started getting back on defence and making them score in the half-court, we turned up the pressure a little bit,” Lee said.
“We are always going to fight as a team. We knew if we got a few stops in a row and every hustle play, we could get to within striking distance.
“Being down 28 seemed like a lot of points, but we were able to chop away and make it work.”
San Antonio never led until a Patty Mills three-pointer with 6:26 minutes to play gave them a 95-92 advantage.
Another Mills three-pointer and free throw almost three minutes later gave the Spurs’ a 99-94 lead and the Kings couldn’t stay with them.
Danny Green drained consecutive three-pointers in the final 2:20 minutes to help San Antonio secure the win.
Mills finished with 17 points while
Jonathon Simmons and Green scored 14 points each.
“It was a team effort — we had 33 assists,” San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said. “Everybody chipped in and did what they had to do by getting up into the Kings after the first quarter.
“They took some pride in it. They wanted to win the game. I thought the whole team effort was fantastic.”
Meanwhile, Isaiah Thomas scored 25 points as the Boston Celtics beat Golden State 99-86 on Wednesday night, spoiling the Warriors’ lone home game in a nearly three-week span.
Splash Brothers Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson combined to shoot just four for 17 from three-point range as Golden State struggled again without injured star Kevin Durant, who spoke before the game wearing a bulky brace on his injured left knee and using crutches.
Curry had 23 points, and Thompson 25 as the Warriors’ 10-game home winning streak was snapped — nearly a year after Boston ended a 54-game home win streak for the Warriors.
Kelly Olynyk added 17 points, five rebounds and five assists for Boston.
Rudy Gobert and Gordon Hayward each scored 23 points to help Utah beat Houston 115-108 for their fourth straight victory.
James Harden had 35 points for the Rockets. They dropped their second in a row.
Jonas Valanciunas had 25 points and 13 rebounds as Toronto beat a New Orleans squad that played without All-Star forward Anthony Davis during the second half 94-87.