San Antonio vs. Los Angeles, Final Score: Lakers pull away from Spurs, 114 – 104

Photos by Logan Riely/NBAE via Getty Images

The Spurs fought hard but ultimately fell short to the Lakers.

Fresh off snapping an eight-game not-winning streak, the Spurs sought to keep the ship right against the Los Angeles Lakers. LeBron James led his team with 33 points and 14 assists setting the tone for a tough game.

In a back and forth battle royale, the Spurs kept pace behind LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar DeRozan, who each had 30 and 24 points, respectively. But alas, the good guys could not keep up with the Lakers in the fourth quarter as they lost 104 – 114. The hard-fought loss ended the Spurs’ hope for establishing a new winning streak and notching a win versus a very good team.

Observations

Early in the game, Danny Green blocked one of LaMarcus Aldridge’s shot at the rim. To further wound us, Green might as well claim that L.A. tacos are better than S.A. tacos. It’s patently not true, but we still love you, Danny.
DeMarre Carroll subbed into the game much earlier than usual, which suggests that Coach Popovich might be feeling more comfortable with the first-year Spur and really wants to shore up this defense.
Patty was Patty tonight, which accurately lines up with Five Thirty Eight’s ranking of Patty Mills as the 21st best player in the league this season, but even Nate Silver can’t predict how many Thanksgiving dinners will be ruined by politics and a charred turducken.
James was the only source of points for the Lakers early on in contrast to the Spurs’ more balanced scoring and good percentage from three. Down the stretch, James caught fire from downtown draining several threes in a row.
Aldridge had his shot going tonight as he’s been scoring better lately. Add better rebounding from the big man to an early Christmas wish list for Spurs fans everywhere and it’ll be a happy holidays indeed.
The Spurs kept Anthony Davis in check for the most part even though he had a double-double.
The good news tonight was that the Spurs didn’t give up a huge lead. The bad news was that they didn’t have a huge lead to give up. The worst news was that the Spurs just didn’t have enough in the tank to upset the Lakers.
Back to the rock, until next time Pounders!