duncan228
03-26-2008, 12:04 AM
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/preview?gameId=280326024
Los Angeles (21-49) at San Antonio (48-23)
By JEFF MEZYDLO, STATS Senior Writer
The San Antonio Spurs have more than bounced back from their longest losing streak of the season.
The surging Spurs look to win their fifth straight game while trying to continue their dominance of the visiting Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night.
San Antonio (48-23) won 107-97 at Orlando on Tuesday, improving to 4-0 since losing four in a row March 12-17. The latest victory left the Spurs fifth in the competitive Western Conference, but just one game back of the overall lead in both the West and the Southwest Division.
“We are headed in that direction,” said Tim Duncan, who had 19 points and 15 rebounds versus Orlando. “It is coming down to crunch time here and we are healthy. That is a big part of it.”
Manu Ginobili had 28 points while Michael Finley added 24 for the Spurs, who shot 54.1 percent from the field and topped the 100-point mark for the third time in four games.
San Antonio is averaging 99.8 points during its current winning streak after putting up 85.5 per game during the recent skid.
“We were really in a drought and over the last couple of weeks we’ve been making shots and our offense has been there,” San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said.
The Spurs will now look to sweep the three-game season series from Los Angeles (21-49). They are also trying for their eighth consecutive win overall against the Clippers, and 11th straight at home in the series.
Ginobili, who averages 20.2 points, has combined for 54 in his last two games. He had 23 points in the Spurs’ 88-82 road win over Los Angeles on Jan. 6 - the teams’ most recent meeting.
Duncan, meanwhile, is averaging 25.5 points and 17.5 boards against the Clippers this season.
Los Angeles fell 103-90 at Dallas on Tuesday to extend its longest losing streak of the season to eight games.
Though little has gone right for the injury-riddled Clippers, and they won’t have star Elton Brand in the lineup Wednesday, the forward is expected to play before the season ends next month.
Brand, the team’s leading scorer the previous two seasons, hopes to return for as many as the final eight games. He has missed the entire season thus far while recovering from a torn Achilles’ tendon.
“We’ve been ultraconservative with this,” Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy said. “We’re not bringing him back soon by any means. … If he didn’t feel like he was ready to do it, then I wouldn’t want to do it. He’s the one who’s chomping at the bit. So we’ll see how it goes.”
Without Brand on Tuesday, Corey Maggette had 21 points as Los Angeles dropped its sixth consecutive road game. Maggette is averaging 26.2 points over his last five games.
However, he is averaging only 14.2 points in his last six games versus San Antonio.
Gameday Matchup
W-L PF PA HOME ROAD STK L10
LAC 21-49 93.8 100.4 12-24 9-25 L8 1-9
SA 48-23 95.7 91.1 28-6 20-17 W4 5-5
2007-08 Season
San Antonio leads 2-0
Sat 12/22 @SA 99, LAC 90
Sun 1/6 SA 88, @ LAC 82
Mar 26, 2008 LAC @ SA 8:30 PM ET
Injury Report
LOS ANGELES
· Brevin Knight PG - Mar 25: Day-to-Day
· Elton Brand PF - Mar 24: OUT
· Tim Thomas PF - Mar 23: Day-to-Day
· Josh Powell PF - Mar 23: Day-to-Day
· Chris Kaman C - Mar 23: Day-to-Day
· Corey Maggette SF - Mar 23: Day-to-Day
SAN ANTONIO
· Brent Barry SG - Mar 25: Day-to-Day
· Robert Horry PF - Mar 23: Day-to-Day
Last 5 Games
LOS ANGELES
Mar 25 @DAL Loss 103-90
Mar 22 POR Loss 83-72
Mar 21 @POR Loss 107-102
Mar 19 GS Loss 116-100
Mar 17 @MIN Loss 99-90
SAN ANTONIO
Mar 25 @ORL Win 107-97
Mar 23 @DAL Win 88-81
Mar 21 SAC Win 102-89
Mar 20 @CHI Win 102-80
Mar 17 BOS Loss 93-91
Depth Chart
POS LOS ANGELES (PPG) SAN ANTONIO (PPG)
PG B. Knight 4.6 T. Parker 18.6
SG C. Mobley 12.8 M. Ginobili 20.1
SF C. Maggette 22.4 B. Bowen 5.9
PF J. Powell 5.2 T. Duncan 19.6
C C. Kaman 16.0 F. Oberto 4.7
Team Stat Leaders
LOS ANGELES SAN ANTONIO
Points C. Maggette 22.4 M. Ginobili 20.1
Rebounds C. Kaman 13.1 T. Duncan 11.5
Assists S. Cassell 4.7 T. Parker 5.8
Steals B. Knight 1.4 M. Ginobili 1.6
Blocks C. Kaman 2.9 T. Duncan 1.9
Today's Line
FAVORITE OPEN CUR UNDERDOG O/U
@SAN ANTONIO -0 -0 LOS ANGELES --
ATS Los Angeles San Antonio
Record: 21-49-0 (.300) 48-23-0 (.676)
As Favorite: 7-7-0 (.500) 44-12-0 (.786)
As Underdog: 14-42-0 (.250) 4-11-0 (.267)
At Home: 12-24-0 (.333) 28-6-0 (.824)
On Road: 9-25-0 (.265) 20-17-0 (.541)
Los Angeles (21-49) at San Antonio (48-23)
By JEFF MEZYDLO, STATS Senior Writer
The San Antonio Spurs have more than bounced back from their longest losing streak of the season.
The surging Spurs look to win their fifth straight game while trying to continue their dominance of the visiting Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night.
San Antonio (48-23) won 107-97 at Orlando on Tuesday, improving to 4-0 since losing four in a row March 12-17. The latest victory left the Spurs fifth in the competitive Western Conference, but just one game back of the overall lead in both the West and the Southwest Division.
“We are headed in that direction,” said Tim Duncan, who had 19 points and 15 rebounds versus Orlando. “It is coming down to crunch time here and we are healthy. That is a big part of it.”
Manu Ginobili had 28 points while Michael Finley added 24 for the Spurs, who shot 54.1 percent from the field and topped the 100-point mark for the third time in four games.
San Antonio is averaging 99.8 points during its current winning streak after putting up 85.5 per game during the recent skid.
“We were really in a drought and over the last couple of weeks we’ve been making shots and our offense has been there,” San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said.
The Spurs will now look to sweep the three-game season series from Los Angeles (21-49). They are also trying for their eighth consecutive win overall against the Clippers, and 11th straight at home in the series.
Ginobili, who averages 20.2 points, has combined for 54 in his last two games. He had 23 points in the Spurs’ 88-82 road win over Los Angeles on Jan. 6 - the teams’ most recent meeting.
Duncan, meanwhile, is averaging 25.5 points and 17.5 boards against the Clippers this season.
Los Angeles fell 103-90 at Dallas on Tuesday to extend its longest losing streak of the season to eight games.
Though little has gone right for the injury-riddled Clippers, and they won’t have star Elton Brand in the lineup Wednesday, the forward is expected to play before the season ends next month.
Brand, the team’s leading scorer the previous two seasons, hopes to return for as many as the final eight games. He has missed the entire season thus far while recovering from a torn Achilles’ tendon.
“We’ve been ultraconservative with this,” Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy said. “We’re not bringing him back soon by any means. … If he didn’t feel like he was ready to do it, then I wouldn’t want to do it. He’s the one who’s chomping at the bit. So we’ll see how it goes.”
Without Brand on Tuesday, Corey Maggette had 21 points as Los Angeles dropped its sixth consecutive road game. Maggette is averaging 26.2 points over his last five games.
However, he is averaging only 14.2 points in his last six games versus San Antonio.
Gameday Matchup
W-L PF PA HOME ROAD STK L10
LAC 21-49 93.8 100.4 12-24 9-25 L8 1-9
SA 48-23 95.7 91.1 28-6 20-17 W4 5-5
2007-08 Season
San Antonio leads 2-0
Sat 12/22 @SA 99, LAC 90
Sun 1/6 SA 88, @ LAC 82
Mar 26, 2008 LAC @ SA 8:30 PM ET
Injury Report
LOS ANGELES
· Brevin Knight PG - Mar 25: Day-to-Day
· Elton Brand PF - Mar 24: OUT
· Tim Thomas PF - Mar 23: Day-to-Day
· Josh Powell PF - Mar 23: Day-to-Day
· Chris Kaman C - Mar 23: Day-to-Day
· Corey Maggette SF - Mar 23: Day-to-Day
SAN ANTONIO
· Brent Barry SG - Mar 25: Day-to-Day
· Robert Horry PF - Mar 23: Day-to-Day
Last 5 Games
LOS ANGELES
Mar 25 @DAL Loss 103-90
Mar 22 POR Loss 83-72
Mar 21 @POR Loss 107-102
Mar 19 GS Loss 116-100
Mar 17 @MIN Loss 99-90
SAN ANTONIO
Mar 25 @ORL Win 107-97
Mar 23 @DAL Win 88-81
Mar 21 SAC Win 102-89
Mar 20 @CHI Win 102-80
Mar 17 BOS Loss 93-91
Depth Chart
POS LOS ANGELES (PPG) SAN ANTONIO (PPG)
PG B. Knight 4.6 T. Parker 18.6
SG C. Mobley 12.8 M. Ginobili 20.1
SF C. Maggette 22.4 B. Bowen 5.9
PF J. Powell 5.2 T. Duncan 19.6
C C. Kaman 16.0 F. Oberto 4.7
Team Stat Leaders
LOS ANGELES SAN ANTONIO
Points C. Maggette 22.4 M. Ginobili 20.1
Rebounds C. Kaman 13.1 T. Duncan 11.5
Assists S. Cassell 4.7 T. Parker 5.8
Steals B. Knight 1.4 M. Ginobili 1.6
Blocks C. Kaman 2.9 T. Duncan 1.9
Today's Line
FAVORITE OPEN CUR UNDERDOG O/U
@SAN ANTONIO -0 -0 LOS ANGELES --
ATS Los Angeles San Antonio
Record: 21-49-0 (.300) 48-23-0 (.676)
As Favorite: 7-7-0 (.500) 44-12-0 (.786)
As Underdog: 14-42-0 (.250) 4-11-0 (.267)
At Home: 12-24-0 (.333) 28-6-0 (.824)
On Road: 9-25-0 (.265) 20-17-0 (.541)