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very good game for the bench players. hope they continue playing well. go spursgo! how about a 3-game winning streak?
Updated.
Assistance from role players propels Spurs
By Jeff McDonald
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Tim Duncan will get credit for the game-winner in the Spurs’ 90-88 victory over the Kings on Sunday night at Arco Arena. Technically, his layup over Quincy Douby did account for the winning points.
A handful of other role players, however, get credit for making Duncan’s last field goal matter.
With Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker still out with injuries, three other Spurs set or matched a season scoring high to help give the Spurs just enough punch to get past the Kings.
Michael Finley had 21 points, Jacque Vaughn had 10 and Matt Bonner had 11, equaling his performance two nights earlier against Houston. Roger Mason Jr.’s 18 points wasn’t a season high, but it was certainly well-appreciated.
“We don’t need those guys to be superstars,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “We just need them to contribute.”
Vaughn’s contributions, meanwhile, went beyond the box score. He logged a season-high 23:04 of court time, taking over at the point after rookie George Hill began to lose his way.
It was Vaughn who was on the floor for much of the Spurs’ comeback in the second half.
“He has a calming effect on us,” Duncan said of Vaughn. “You know he is in control, and has control of the offense.”
Age is a number: Manu Ginobili has a new workout partner.
Ex-Spurs forward Sean Elliott, now a team broadcaster, participated in Sunday morning two-on-two drills with Ginobili, prior to the team’s game against the Kings.
Recovering from offseason ankle surgery, Ginobili said he had no problems practicing with a 40-year old.
“In my condition,” he said, “I’m basically 39 1/2”
Ahearn joins team: The Spurs made the season’s first dip into the NBA Development League on Sunday, signing free-agent point guard Blake Ahearn. To clear roster space, the team placed swingman Desmon Farmer on waivers.
Ahearn, one of the final training-camp cuts of the Minnesota Timberwolves, had been set to begin the season with the Dakota Wizards, with whom he was named the D-League’s rookie of the year last season.
The 6-foot-2 Ahearn should provide some added point-guard depth for the Spurs with Parker out. He spent 10 games last season with the Miami Heat.
A college standout at Missouri State, Ahearn left school in 2007 as the most accurate free throw shooter in NCAA Division-I history at 94.6 percent (435-460).
Lineup shuffle redux: Popovich again played with his lineup and rotation Sunday, moving Finley back into the starting unit in place of Ime Udoka.
Udoka, meanwhile, did not play. Neither did forward Kurt Thomas, another rotation mainstay.
very good game for the bench players. hope they continue playing well. go spursgo! how about a 3-game winning streak?
I think Mason Jnr has been a tremendously astute acquisition.
Nice to see Bonner playing back to back good games
This a good start for manu before he meet BruceEx-Spurs forward Sean Elliott, now a team broadcaster, participated in Sunday morning two-on-two drills with Ginobili, prior to the team’s game against the Kings.
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