Spurs vs. 76ers Previews

[duncan228]

Saturday: 76ers (13-19) at Spurs (21-11) (http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/spurs/Saturday_76ers_13-19_at_Spurs_21-11.html)
Express-News

Time: 7:30 p.m.
TV: FSNSW
NBA TV
Radio: WOAI-AM 1200, KCOR-AM 1350

STARTING LINEUPS
POS - SPURS - 76ERS

PG - 9 Tony Parker (6-2, 8th yr) - 7 Andre Miller (6-2, 10th yr)
Parker on fire since 3-of-17 outing at Orlando on Dec. 18.

SG - 8 Roger Mason Jr. (6-5, 5th yr) - 33 Willie Green (6-3, 6th yr)
Mason not only Spurs best 3-point shooter, he’s almost been most clutch.

SF - 4 Michael Finley (6-7, 14th yr) - 9 Andre Iguodala (6-6, 5th yr)
Finley has also been earning his money at the 3-point stripe lately.

PF - 21 Tim Duncan (6-11, 12th yr) - 21 Thaddeus Young (6-8, 2nd yr)
Young putting together a breakthrough sophomore season for the Sixers.

C - 15 Matt Bonner (6-10, 5th yr) - 1 Samuel Dalembert (6-11, 7th yr)
Not an offensive force, but shot-blocking Dalembert can cause trouble on defense.

SPURS RESERVES

12 Bruce Bowen, F, 6-7, 13th yr
20 Manu Ginobili, G, 6-6, 7th yr
3 George Hill, G, 6-2, 1st yr
7 Fabricio Oberto, C, 6-10, 4th yr
40 Kurt Thomas, C/F, 6-9, 14th yr
35 Anthony Tolliver, C, 6-8, 1st yr
5 Ime Udoka, G/F, 6-5, 5th yr

76ERS RESERVES

30 Reggie Evans, F, 6-8, 7th yr
12 Royal Ivey, G, 6-4, 5th yr
8 Donyell Marshall, F, 6-9, 15th yr
50 Theo Ratliff, C, 6-11, 14th yr
4 Kareem Rush, F/G, 6-6, 6th yr
16 Marreese Speights, F/C, 6-10, 1st yr
23 Lou Williams, G, 6-1, 4th yr

COACHES

Spurs: Gregg Popovich
76ers: Tony DiLeo

INJURIES

Spurs: Ian Mahinmi (left ankle sprain) is out.

76ers: Elton Brand (right shoulder dislocation) and Jason Smith (right knee injury) are out.

PROJECTED INACTIVE PLAYERS

Spurs: Ian Mahinmi, Malik Hairston, Jacque Vaughn.

76ers: Brand, Smith.

NOTABLE

Spurs have won 20 of past 21 over Sixers in San Antonio, dating to the 1986-87 season. Sixers’ only road victory in that span came on Jan. 3, 2004. ..... Spurs have won seven of past eight at home this season, having a seven-game home winning streak snapped with 100-98 loss to Milwaukee on Dec. 30. ..... Sixers are 2-5 in the seven games since Brand, their marquee offseason acquisition, went down with a separated shoulder.

- Jeff McDonald

[m33p0]

already? Spurs on a B2B?

[Ditty]

sixers had a b2b with the mavs

spurs look like they gave half ass tonite but we still beat the grizzles by over 10

i predict another win and next 2 games after that

then orlando and lakers woooo

[TDMVPDPOY]

easy win, next

[Rapper]

Don't ever and never underestimate your opponents

Don't be cocky and arrogant even if the opponents of the spurs are playing worse than them,

[pawe]

easy win, next

BOOK IT!
*countering the jinx

[Chieflion]

already? Spurs on a B2B?

Every team played on Friday. No excuses if the Spurs lose this one.

[T Park]

Every team played on Friday. No excuses if the Spurs lose this one.

:lol

Classic.

[duncan228]

Philadelphia (13-19) at San Antonio (21-11) Preview (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/preview?gid=2009010324&prov=ap)
Game info: 8:30 pm EST Sat Jan 3, 2009
TV Schedule
National: NBATV
Away: WPSG Home: FSN-Southwest
By Jeff Mezydlo

The San Antonio Spurs haven’t lost consecutive home games in almost two months.

There’s a good chance that won’t change as the Spurs look to continue their home dominance over the struggling Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday night.

San Antonio (21-11) bounced back from its first home loss in a month with a 91-80 road victory over Memphis on Friday, its sixth win in seven games overall.

The Spurs fell 100-98 to visiting Milwaukee on Tuesday, and now will try to avoid a second straight loss at the AT&T Center for the first time since going 0-3 to start the season. San Antonio is 12-6 on its home court.

Philadelphia (13-19) could be the ideal opponent for the Spurs to prevent that from happening. The 76ers have lost four in a row and 15 of their last 16 visits to San Antonio. They’ll try for their first victory five years to the date of their last, 83-77 over the Spurs on Jan. 3, 2004.

Tim Duncan had 20 points and 10 rebounds, and Tony Parker added 19 points on Friday for San Antonio, which opened the game shooting 71 percent, including hitting its last eight shots in the first quarter.

While the Spurs’ offense was the story early, their defense was the difference most of the night, holding the Grizzlies to 39.7 percent shooting from the field, including 2-for-14 from 3-point range.

“We needed our defense. We weren’t making shots at a great rate (in the second half),” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “Our defense helped us get through.”

Parker and Duncan continue to play at an even higher level of late than their usual All-Star form. Parker is averaging 26.6 points in his last five games and Duncan 24.0 in his last four contests.

“They’re paid to do that,” Popovich said. “Usually the best players carry the team.”

Parker had 27 points and five assists, but San Antonio lost 103-96 at Philadelphia on March 15 in the most recent meeting. The 76ers’ victory snapped a three-game losing streak to the Spurs, who have won six of the last eight in the series.

Philadelphia enters this contest off a 96-86 loss at Dallas on Friday to fall to 1-4 on its season-high six-game road trip. Andre Iguodala scored 22 points, while Andre Miller had 17 and a season-high 11 rebounds for the 76ers, who are 6-11 on the road this season.

The Sixers led by as many 12 in the third quarter, but were hampered down the stretch by inconsistent offensive execution while the Mavericks made 11 of 15 shots in the fourth quarter.

“Our goal is to do 48 minutes, not 39 or 40 minutes. So we just have to do it a little longer,” Philadelphia interim coach Tony DiLeo said. “We just have to figure out a way (to finish the game off) and I’m sure when we’re full strength we’ll have a little more depth to do that.”

With Elton Brand out until at least the middle of the month with a shoulder injury, Iguodala and Miller continue to carry the load.

Iguodala has scored 50 points in his last two games, while Miller looks for another big night versus San Antonio after scoring 32 on 11-for-14 shooting against the Spurs in March.

Notes

76ers:

G Andre Miller had a season-high 11 rebounds Friday. ... Philadelphia had 15 free-throw attempts in the first half and only one in the second half. ... The 76ers had outshot their opponents in eight of their last nine games entering Friday. The Mavs outshot the Sixers 46 percent to 45 percent. ... Philadelphia is now 1-4 on its six-game road trip.

Spurs:

San Antonio suffered a scare in the third quarter when G Tony Parker went down after a collision with G Manu Ginobili - possibly Ginobili's elbow to Parker's chest - late in the third quarter. He was on the floor for a few minutes before heading to the bench. He was able to return to the game. ... The Spurs are 0-2 against Milwaukee this season, as the Bucks beat the Spurs earlier in the season on November 12, when San Antonio was without Parker and Ginobili. ... The Spurs entered the game tied with Phoenix for best 3-point shooting in the league at 40 percent. They hit 62.5 percent (10-of-16) against Milwaukee.

Team Stat Leaders

Points

Elton Brand Phi 15.9
Tony Parker SA 22.0

Rebounds

Elton Brand Phi 9.8
Tim Duncan SA 10.3

Assists

Andre Miller Phi 6.4
Tony Parker SA 6.7

Team Comparison
Team Record Standings PF PA Road/Home Streak L10

Philadelphia 13-19 3rd Atlantic / 10th East 94.3 96.2 Road 6-11 Lost 1 4-6

San Antonio 21-11 2nd Southwest / 3rd West 96.7 93.4 Home 12-6 Won 1 7-3

[boutons_]

Very risky game. Ya never know if the Spurs will beat a lottery team in Nov-Feb.

[honestfool84]

sixers had a b2b with the mavs

spurs look like they gave half ass tonite but we still beat the grizzles by over 10

i predict another win and next 2 games after that

then orlando and lakers woooo

SPURSOWNTEXAS, nice signature - i am in the video on the right.
that is at the house of a good friend of mine. haha.

small world.

[Xylus]

Man, that Elton Brand character sure is injured a lot.

Normally, I'd say this would be an easy win for you guys, but since the 76ers suck balls this year, I'll say it'll be a close game.

[mfanatic]

This is going to be a good test, both teams on a B2B, the sixers are very athletic and they rebound very well, thank God Brand is out, LETS GO SPURS!

[Chieflion]

This is going to be a good test, both teams on a B2B, the sixers are very athletic and they rebound very well, thank God Brand is out, LETS GO SPURS!

When Brand is out, Iguodala somehow will be playing better.

[T Park]

Andre Miller is always a tough matchup, Iguodala is an all star.

Dalembert is a tough matchup.


Sixers still have what it takes.

I still don't understand why they fired Maurice Cheeks, but whatever.

[Chieflion]

I don't think Iggy was an all star before, but whatever. I hope we can buy a win before the big guns arrive.

[TDMVPDPOY]

if we lose on this b2b, expect a trade thread and more negative comments :D

[Chieflion]

What's next, trade Manu for Iggy if we lose?

[mrspurs]

Don't ever and never underestimate your opponents

Don't be cocky and arrogant even if the opponents of the spurs are playing worse than them,

Agreed, Philly is another team that no matter what, has always given us problems. There are no gimmes in todays NBA. And if your the Spurs, everyone wants a piece of ya. The kids on most sorry teams rosters grew up looking at TP,TD,and Manu. And they grew up watching Pop coaching them. Now they in the NBA and have a chance at playing against them and they will bring their A games.

[shelshor]

Referee Assignments
Sat Jan 3
Philadelphia @ San Antonio: D. Crawford, D. Jones, L. Richardson

[mikeanthony21]

Andre Miller is always a tough matchup, Iguodala is an all star.

Dalembert is a tough matchup.


Sixers still have what it takes.

I still don't understand why they fired Maurice Cheeks, but whatever.

Cheeks was fired because firing a coach is so much more the "IN" thing to do as opposed to just fielding a competitive team.

[gingerwave]

easy win, next

That's what concerns me. I hope the team has that same thought!:flag:

[benefactor]

Anyone that has been a Spurs fan for a considerable length of time knows better than to say that any game is an easy win. We always seem to find a way to make easy games difficult.

[duncan228]

Sixers finish road trip in San Antonio (http://www.sportsnetwork.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=sportsnetwork&page=nba/scores/live/pv10839.htm)

(Sports Network) - The Philadelphia 76ers close out a torturous six-game road trip Saturday when they take to the hardwood in the Alamo City against the San Antonio Spurs.

The Sixers fell to a miserable 1-4 on the trek in Dallas on Friday when Dirk Nowitzki scored a game-high 31 points, and the Mavericks used a late fourth quarter run to down Philadelphia, 96-86, at American Airlines Center.

Andre Iguodala had 22 points, five assists and four rebounds for the Sixers, who fell to 6-11 as the visitor this season. Andre Miller had 17 points, 11 rebounds and four assists, while Lou Williams also had 17 points in the loss.

The Spurs, meanwhile, triumphed for the sixth time in seven games in Memphis on Friday when Tim Duncan registered 20 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, leading San Antonio to a 91-80 victory over the Grizzlies.

Tony Parker had 19 points and dished out five assists for the Spurs, who improved to 9-5 as the visitor this season.

Manu Ginobili totaled 13 points, six rebounds, six assists and five steals for San Antonio, which swept Memphis in the four-game season series and has won 14 of the last 16 overall versus the Grizzlies.

Home cooking has meant a lot in this series recently. the host has won six of the past seven and 13 of the last 16 meetings in the series. The Sixers have dropped four straight and 20 of their last 21 in the Alamo City where the Spurs are 12-6 this season.

[duncan228]

A Spurs fan and a Sixers fan swap Q&A's.

At Center Court with Sixers4Guidos (http://48minutesofhell.blogspot.com/)

You must read this before the Spurs game (http://sixers4guidos.wordpress.com/2009/01/03/you-must-read-this-before-the-spurs-game/)

[tomtom]

hmm and i thought we were undersized

[T Park]

Cheeks was fired because firing a coach is so much more the "IN" thing to do as opposed to just fielding a competitive team.

IMO, Cheeks is a damn good coach. He proved in Portland and proved it again last year with a bad 76ers team and giving the Pistons all they could handle.

If I were the Thunder, Clippers I would definately look at Cheeks as my head coach next season.

[Sissiborgo]

This is our game...Big W for us!:fro