San Antonio vs Memphis, Final Score: Spurs sneak out the win over the Grizzlies, 100-98

Who knew a win against the worst team in the West could be so sweet?

After losing the first two in the Spurs’ three-game home stand, San Antonio came out slow against the worst team in the West, but they handed Memphis their 14th straight loss in a too-close, come-from-behind thriller. Tony Parker led all scorers with a season-best 23 points off the bench. With LaMarcus Aldridge bottled up the whole game, the Spurs found a closer, and it came in the form of a familiar face. Tony scored 8 points in the final frame to lead the Good Guys to the W.

  • The only aggressor in the first quarter was Parker with 6 shots, 3 of which were in the paint, and he scored 11 of the Spurs’ 21 first quarter points.
  • The first 3 for the Spurs came from Danny Green with 4:45 left in the half, the second came on the halftime buzzer-beater, also by Danny. San Antonio was 6-22 from deep.
  • Xavier Rathan-Mayes didn’t have a chance to get his name on his #26 jersey after signing a 10-day contract with the Grizzlies yesterday, but he scored 6 points in his NBA debut.
  • The Spurs couldn’t take advantage of many easy opportunities. Kyle Anderson’s first steal of Chandler Parsons led to a fast break that was blocked by Marc Gasol, emblematic of the first three quarters. Anderson got revenge with his second steal of Parsons, which led to his two-hand dunk.
  • Both teams came out with a bit more fire in the second half. The Griz hit 4 threes in the first half of the third quarter after hitting one in the first half, and Kyle Anderson lobbed up his third steal for the nasty Dejounte Murray slam to get the crowd, and the team, going.
  • Danny’s energy off the bench allowed the Spurs to stay in this game, with his 14 and Tony’s 23 leading the Spurs’ bench, who outscored the Griz 69-25.
  • Tony had a soccer-like flop after foul, falling hard at the top of the key, and he got a technical foul for it.
  • Even though he only went 2-8 and had 7 points, Aldridge was still clutch, hitting 1-2 FTs to give the Spurs the 4 point lead to seal the Spurs’ victory.
  • The next three games are much tougher, with the Warriors, Thunder, and Rockets within the next five days, so this was a must win.

First up is the Golden State Warriors on Thursday at 9:30 p.m. on TNT.

Source: Pounding The Rock

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