Spurs top Grizzlies at home, 99-109.
The longtime rival, Memphis, came in swinging and made a game of it, ultimately falling short. Ex-Grizzly, Rudy Gay, had a solid showing that began with nine points in quarter one. Patty Mills finished it with a 3PTer at the buzzer, putting the Spurs up 25-20.
Iman Shumpert stepped up for a sour scoring night by Avery Bradley, tasked with guarding Mike Conley of Memphis. The Grizzlies point guard would rattle in a 3PTer of his own to give his team the 50-47 halftime advantage.
Patty Mills would finish it off for good, though, hitting two 3PTers in the final quarter (90-100).
The Grizzlies would make a decent strike back, until Kawhi Leonard stole the ball for the huge dunk on the other end, following it up with an ice-cold 3PTer. The defensive pests, Shumpert & Bradley would get Avery the easy layup after a block as Rudy Gay blocked Garrett Temple's last-ditch shot.
Rudy Gay had 22 points; Kawhi Leonard was high-man with 26 points, 9 rebounds and 2 steals (1 block). Iman Shumpert had 18 points, with a steal and a block. Patty Mills dropped 15 with six assists. Avery Bradley had 9 points, but it was Joakim Noah's 20 rebounds anchoring San Antone. For Memphis, Garrett Temple had 19 points (6-19 FG%), Mike Conley had 17 points with 8 assists and Marc Gasol with just 13 points and 11 rebounds. Jaren Jackson Jr. had 10 points with 9 rebounds. The Spurs dominated Memphis inside 50-28, with a 30-22 third quarter advantage proving to be the difference as both teams only had 14 turnovers and combined for 56 assists.
The Spurs will travel to Memphis next, for a rematch in this timeless rivalry.