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Duncan played a great game tonight on both ends..his bull foul trouble really killed us too, shows the impact he has on this team..
Spurs overcome sloppy third quarter
Jeff McDonald
Momentum had vanished, the Spurs were giving the ball away like freebies to the first 1,000 fans, and their lead — which once had been as many as 22 points — had dwindled almost as far as it could dwindle.
The Charlotte Bobcats, left for roadkill only moments before, were surging.
When the going gets tough, the Spurs were reminded Friday night, it's nice to have Tim Duncan as a fallback.
Ahead by just one entering the fourth quarter, the Spurs dumped the ball to Duncan on three consecutive possessions. He made three consecutive tough baskets to settle the Spurs and get them pointed toward a 104-85 victory.
“It's no surprise,” Antonio McDyess said. “When we get in a bind, there's no question who we're going to get the ball to.”
Duncan's final line — 17 points, nine rebounds and six assists — was the kind he's produced in his sleep throughout his sure-to-be Hall of Fame career.
Friday, his timing was impeccable.
The Spurs, perhaps overwhelmed by the Christmas spirit, won despite committing a season-high 28 turnovers, gift-wrapped for 33 Bobcats points. They gagged up 10 during a near-disastrous third quarter that saw Charlotte outscore them 29-13, turning a game that once looked to be a rout into something else entirely.
Ahead 65-43 two minutes into the third, the Spurs (11-9) led just 72-71 heading into the final frame. At that moment, all 17,508 people in the AT&T Center seemed to inhale in unison, as if about to watch a traffic accident they'd already seen before.
Enter Duncan, stage left.
His mini-barrage to start the fourth — a jump hook, a put-back and a drive on Nazr Mohammed — helped keep the Spurs from capsizing.
“I got a couple shots up and got them to go,” Duncan said. “I wanted to be aggressive, but I was going to take whatever came.”
Less than two minutes after Duncan's final basket of the night, the Spurs' lead was back up to double digits after a five-point spurt from George Hill.
By the final horn, the game was as it was before the Spurs' third quarter meltdown, the final score not indicative of how tenuous things had become.
Manu Ginobili scored 20 of his 22 points and made all four 3-point tries in the first half, while Richard Jefferson chipped in 17.
It was another must-have win for the Spurs, who embark this afternoon on a three-game road trip.
“I've never been on a team where you turn the ball over 30 times, give up a 20 point lead and then come back and beat a team by almost 20,” McDyess said.
The Spurs admit their turnover trouble, which has taken on epidemic proportions, is indeed problematic. During the past six games, the Spurs have committed 110.
They blew past their previous season high (19) Friday when Ginobili was stripped with four minutes left in the third quarter. Tony Parker was the night's biggest offender, with seven, to go with his nine points and 10 assists.
The giveaways were contagious. The Bobcats (9-12) committed 19 of them — a high for a Spurs opponent this season — yet in this game were the paragon of precision.
The Bobcats climbed back into contention on the back of the Spurs' sloppiness. When Derrick Brown dunked in transition with 2:14 remaining in the third — not surprisingly off a Jefferson turnover — Charlotte was within four. Moments later, Gerald Wallace brought the Bobcats within one.
Turnovers, Duncan said, “really bit us these last couple games.”
“It's something we're going to have to learn from,” Duncan said. “Luckily enough, it didn't kill us tonight.
That's because the Spurs had Duncan. A 6-foot-11 future Hall of Famer in the middle can often cover for all kinds of ills.
“That's usually what your best players do,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “In the end, they win it or lose it.”
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Slideshow.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/slidesho...ts_104-85.html
Duncan played a great game tonight on both ends..his bull foul trouble really killed us too, shows the impact he has on this team..
28 freaking turnovers?! dang crap.
i remember when we used to lead the league in lowest amount of turnovers, at about 8-10 a game.
this is stupid. somebody needs to fix something. i suppose they're working on that..but dang, 28?
I really dont expect us to turn the ball over this much every game so im assuming this is an admiration. Call me an optimist but im assuming that a coach as good as Pop will fix all these stupid mistakes and we will play more efficient basketball down the stretch. Obviously the performance that we put out tonight will not beat good teams, but right now we need wins to gain confidence and improve our record, and tonight did that. I would be worried if we were turning the ball over 30 times in february or march but stupid turnovers are fixable this early in the season.
I've never been on a team where you turn the ball over 30 times, give up a 20 point lead and then come back and beat a team by almost 20,” McDyess said.
Thank you, Tim.
I remember the Spurs last 2008 Playoffs against Hornets, where the 3rd quarter is their problem in road (except the game 7) also the first game against the Lakers.
It used to be the Spurs would make their run during the 3rd quarter behind a strong defensive effort.. unfortunately the defense still hasn't reached the point where it can be relied upon on a consistent basis.. more work needed but progress is being made.. they did manage to hold the Hornets to a pretty low score after all.
I'm still having trouble wrapping my brain around this one.“I've never been on a team where you turn the ball over 30 times, give up a 20 point lead and then come back and beat a team by almost 20,” McDyess said.
This game is a testament to what can happen if they make a lot of mistakes yet still play Spurs basketball. As long as the defense continues to be consistent we will be able to overcome the other growing pains much easier.
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