San Antone: The Gait Toward Eight

The Greek Freak vs The Claw... Outpacing the Spurs 27-17 in the opening quarter, the Bucks looked good early as the Spurs stuttered yet again out of the starting gate, missing uncharacteristically eight of the team's twenty total free throws. Patty Mills never really got going, but he finally redeemed himself somewhat with a clutch 3PTer in OverTime as the Bucks sneaked away briefly with the lead. The Spurs fought back into a rhythm and won the second quarter 28-21, a scary moment coming after a fierce block on Antetokounmpo by Gasol that knocked him hard to the floor, the Spaniard receiving a technical foul for intimidatingly standing over the Greek Freak. Giannis recovered from the nasty fall, but missed both free throws. The Bucks were cold from long range in this game, going 4/26. Khris Middleton hit a near-full court heave at the buzzer, however, after Patty Mills drove in for a layup and made the free throw after being hacked to give the Spurs a would-be 3PT game-wi...

Many flash bulbs went off for this thrilling smash by Leonard. An entertaining contest for the fans in attendance, the Spurs were able to hold off the Clippers, owning a high lead of twelve at one point, as Danilo Gallinari's final sixth 3PTer crashed in at the buzzer. The game had its share of highlight reel moments, including a huge dunk as Kawhi Leonard soared through the air and slammed the ball home. The Spurs won the first quarter 31-29, surging heavily after a sour start on a 17-4 run. They won the second quarter 28-27, pulled away in the third 31-24 and then got outscored by seven in the final period, 27-34. It was Avery Bradley's ballsy performance in the final moments that preserved the lead, preventing the upset. The Clippers threw down in this battle, with Gallinari the top scorer for 27 points on 9-13 shooting. Tobias Harris put the pressure on early, finishing with 26 points. Patrick Beverley had 13 points with 8 assists. Lou Williams had 12 points but wen...

A collective strength got the Spurs a win tonight. It was the home crowd's energy, it was Joakim Noah's furious effort, it was Iman Shumpert stealing inbound passes, it was Patty Mills from long range that got San Antonio back to its winning ways after a painful five-game drought. Plays made in this game made it a three-point deficit instead of a six-point hole, then deflecting another pass, mucking things up and making it a difficult time for the visitors from Phoenix. Defying the defense to score on the fast break time and time again kept the Spurs within striking distance as the 4th Quarter clocked ticked down. At that point, there had been eleven lead changes, five ties, and the high mark of an eight point lead by the Suns. A confident-looking stroke by Patty Mills behind that line finally gave the Spurs a two-point lead (84-82) pulling up over Devin Booker. Nothing easy came for Phoenix, a foul here, free throws there...a close-out on a corner wing 3PTer and then so...