Kings-Spurs Preview

[duncan228]

http://www.nba.com/games/20080321/SACSAS/preview.html?nav=scoreboardhome

Kings-Spurs Preview
By JEFF MEZYDLO, STATS Senior Writer

After ending their longest losing stretch of the season, the San Antonio Spurs are hoping to make a run in a positive direction.

The Spurs look to win consecutive games for the first time in two weeks as they host the Sacramento Kings on Friday.

San Antonio (45-23) won 102-80 at Chicago on Thursday night to snap a four-game losing streak and win for just the second time in eight contests since winning a season-high 11 in a row from Feb. 11-March 6.

"It was just a bad stretch for us and this is a step in the right direction,'' said San Antonio's Tim Duncan, who had 22 points and 10 rebounds against the Bulls. "It's all about getting a rhythm going right now.''

Though it came against a Chicago team 14 games under .500 and struggling to remain in the Eastern Conference playoff race, any victory is welcomed by the Spurs, who topped the 100-point mark for the first time in five games.

San Antonio, which averages 95.5 points, was scoring only 85.5 per game during its four-game skid, which featured losses against four of the NBA's better teams in New Orleans, Detroit, Philadelphia and Boston.

Though the Spurs are sixth in the competitive Western Conference, they are two games back of the top spot held by the Los Angeles Lakers and 1 1/2 games behind the first-place Hornets in the Southwest Division. San Antonio, however, is just 2 1/2 games ahead of the Golden State Warriors, who hold the eighth and final playoff spot.

"The first seed could be the eighth and the eighth seed is as good as the first and that's no exaggeration,'' Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "None of us is better than the other. So the seeds are really irrelevant this season more than any other time.''

Tony Parker had 23 points and six assists Thursday as the Spurs outscored Chicago 33-14 in the second quarter to break open the game. Parker is averaging 18.7 points overall and 22.0 in his last seven contests.

Duncan, meanwhile, bounced back Thursday after combining for 26 points and 14 rebounds in his two previous games.

Duncan and Parker, though, were held to a combined 27 points in the Spurs' 112-99 loss at Sacramento on Nov. 26 as the Kings evened the season series at one game apiece.

San Antonio, which had its seven-game home winning streak snapped in a 93-91 loss to the Celtics on Monday, will try for a fourth consecutive victory over the Kings at the AT&T Center.

Sacramento (31-36) looks for its third straight victory after winning 122-105 at home over Golden State on Tuesday. Kevin Martin had 34 points om 13-for-22 shooting while Ron Artest added 26 for the Kings, who shot a season-high 58.0 percent.

"The bottom line is we came out, played harder than them in the first and second halves," Kings coach Reggie Theus told the team's official Web site.

Martin, the team leader at 23.0 points per contest, is coming off his second straight 30-point game after scoring 32 in a 106-100 win over Toronto on Sunday. He is averaging just 16.0 points on 37.9 percent shooting in two games versus San Antonio in 2007-08.

[Dex]

Wrath of Beno Udrih pt. 2?

Let's hope not.

[Mr.Bottomtooth]

Vaughn is gonna put the shutdown on Beno. :hat
Book it.

[Fabbs]

[url]
The Spurs look to win consecutive games for the first time in two weeks as they host the Sacramento Kings on Friday.
I think it's very important we win this (as with last nights win over Chi) as the teams we need to keep pace with (or better yet jump) continue to play each other thus we have opportunity to gain on at least one of them.
Houston @ Phoenix
Boston @ New Oleans Go Boston!
Boston @ Phoenix Go Boston!

Plus our schedule is not going to get easier, next at Dallas and Orlando.

[ancestron]

Is Beno the starting PG?

[bigfundamental21]

We've gotta put the beatdown on the Kings. And Tony better school Beno. I fully expect Manu to have a big game, as he has been struggling lately.

BELIEVE.

[Russ]

How about B on B? Bowen on Beno -- that would shut Beno down early and send him a message. I say take Beno out from the get go.

[Ishta]

I just want a win!

[duncan228]

http://www.nba.com/spurs/gameday/080321.html

Probable Starters:

Parker
Guard
18.7 PPG
Finley
Guard
9.5 PPG
Bowen
Forward
5.9 PPG
Duncan
Forward
19.6 PPG
Oberto
Center
4.7 PPG

Spur in the Spotlight
Tim Duncan
Tim Duncan had 22 to go with 10 rebounds and three blocks Thursday night.

Did You Know...
Tim Duncan has recorded four 20-20 games against Sacramento, more than any other opponent… Kings guard Beno Udrih was selected by San Antonio in the first round (28th pick) of the 2004 NBA draft … he played three seasons for the Spurs before being traded at the beginning of the 2007-08 season … Sacramento assistant Chuck Person holds the Spurs franchise-record for three-pointers made in a game …Person knocked down nine against Vancouver on 12/30/97 … Dale Ellis, at the time with the Spurs, became the first player in NBA history to make 1,000 three-point field goals when he connected from downtown with 7:41 left in the third quarter against the Kings on 3/19/94.

[duncan228]

Kings.com

http://www.nba.com/kings/game_preview/The_Warm_Up_Kings_at_Spurs_032108.html

A Unique Look at Tonight’s Kings at Spurs Game

The Kings visit the Spurs tonight at AT&T Center, where the teams will play for the third time this season. On November 26, the Kings evened the season series with a 112-99 victory in Sacramento. Facing his former team, Beno Udrih scored a career-high 27 points while Brad Miller recorded 17 points and a game-high 10 rebounds. Tony Parker tallied 12 points and seven rebounds for the Spurs, while Tim Duncan chipped in 15 points.

Get ready for the Kings-Spurs matchup with Coach Reggie Theus and Anthony Johnson in the Game Day Q&A.

Head Coach Reggie Theus

Do you think Beno Udrih should be considered for the Most Improved Player award?
“Absolutely, there is no doubt [he should be considered]. I think he’s surprised the entire League in terms of how effective he is. I think people thought that he was pretty good. He’s still got another level to go. Maybe not physically, but commanding the mental part of the game, he has another level to go that is going to make him a much better point guard.”

“As a coach, you have to empower your point guard and that’s what I’ve been really trying to do. I coach him very hard and we have dialogue all the time. [The team] also knows how I feel about Beno. A great example is at the end of the game the other night. It was a relatively close game, and for some reason, Beno didn’t have the ball in his hands the last couple of times down the court. So I called a timeout to make sure that everyone knew that I wanted Beno to have the ball in his hands. That [example] shows the confidence that I have in him. And that’s what we’re building [on in his] game, our relationship and the expectations of his teammates.”

Mikki Moore has shot 71 percent from the field over the course of the past eight games. What have you noticed in his play of late?

“Mikki’s been playing well lately. He’s been shooting the ball so well that it’s really been helpful. Mikki’s been so good at helping us space the floor. When he spaces the floor, that’s when he gets those shots.”

“I’m trying to tell him that when he spaces the floor, that’s when those shots come. If he holds his pick and doesn’t space after that, he doesn’t get those open shots. But he’s been doing a good job of knocking those down and it’s been very helpful.”

Anthony Johnson

Despite all the major moves made by teams around the NBA, are the Spurs still the measuring stick in the NBA?

"They're still the reigning NBA Champions. So until that is taken from them, you have to give them just respect and [consider them] the measuring stick."

Some pundits have said they are slowing down with age, do you agree?

"They're getting older, but Gregg Popovich is such a great coach that he is going to put those guys in a position to be successful, night in and night out. Some people may look down on, or wonder if they are getting too old, but those guys are still relatively young. They've played a lot of basketball in their careers, but Popovich is going to have those guys ready to play when the playoffs come."

Bruce Bowen recently played his 500th consecutive game. How hard is it to sustain a streak like that in the NBA?

"It's definitely difficult because you have some nights where your body is trying to tell you, you can't do it. But mentally, you just have to dial in and overcome that. Any time a guy can play and have a streak where they play 300, 400 or 500 games in a row, it really says a lot about their character and you can just count on them [for] dependability."

Being a seasoned veteran, do you have any tricks of the trade that help you maintain good health?

"As I've gotten older, it's [even more] important that I take care of my body and eat right. So dietary concerns are something I pay a little more attention to. And just keeping my body strong and fresh [is part of that]. I try to lift on game days and if I'm not playing a lot, I make sure to get in extra conditioning to keep my body prepared. When you're not playing a lot and then you start playing a lot your body has trouble handling that sometimes. So I just try to keep my body on top of things and stay prepared to play 25 to 30 minutes."

[Brutalis]

I hope Beno burns TP again. Wonder why we didn't get shit for him.

Next time let's give Scola and Beno away for a schedule break.

Oh dear am I starting something? Naawwwwww.

[Texas_Ranger]

Udrih (back) did not practice on Thursday and is listed as questionable Friday at San Antonio, the Sacramento Bee reports.

[ducks]

I hope Beno burns TP again. Wonder why we didn't get shit for him.

Next time let's give Scola and Beno away for a schedule break.

Oh dear am I starting something? Naawwwwww.
are you a spur fan or a beno fan :devil

[Brutalis]

are you a spur fan or a beno fan :devil
Spur. Just kicking a dead issue.

[duncan228]

http://www.sportsnetwork.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=sportsnetwork&page=nba/news/news.aspx?id=4139807

Defending-champion Spurs host Kings at AT&T Center

(Sports Network) - After showing signs of breaking out of a recent slump their last time out, the San Antonio Spurs shoot for back-to-back wins when the defending NBA champions host the Sacramento Kings tonight at the AT&T Center.

San Antonio had lost six times in seven outings and was mired in a four-game skid before rebounding with an impressive performance Thursday in Chicago. Tony Parker scored 23 points and handed out six assists as the Spurs posted a 102-80 rout of the Bulls at the United Center.

Tim Duncan had 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for San Antonio, while Ime Udoka chipped in 13 points off the bench.

The Spurs' slide has dropped them into third place in the powerful Southwest Division and the No. 6 slot in the Western Conference playoff race. San Antonio enters tonight's play trailing division leader New Orleans by 1 1/2 games and is one-half back of second-place Houston at the moment.

Sacramento is well out of the playoff picture but has been playing well as of late. The Kings recorded their fourth win in five games with Tuesday's 122-105 home decision over Golden State.

Kevin Martin poured in 34 points for Sacramento and Ron Artest netted 26, while the Kings shot an excellent 58 percent from the floor as a team. Mikki Moore (19 points, 10 rebounds) and Brad Miller (14 points, 13 rebounds) each posted double-doubles in the victory, as did Anthony Johnson, who finished with 13 points and 13 assists.

While the Kings have been on a mild roll, the club is still a lackluster 10-24 on the road this year. They've also had trouble winning in San Antonio over the years, having dropped seven of its last eight to the Spurs as the visitor in this series.

The Spurs have also emerged victorious in nine of the 11 most recent overall meetings between these clubs.

San Antonio is an outstanding 27-6 at the AT&T Center this season. Following tonight's test, the Spurs will play back-to-back tough road games at Dallas and Orlando.