Pound The Rock - The San Antonio Spurs

[BobbyColtrane]

117 89

Spurs outduel familiar face in Tony Parker, 117-89

CHARLOTTE– San Antonio faced old friend Tony Parker and dealt a serious blow to the Hornets' playoff hopes with a 117-89 win over Charlotte. The loss dropped the Hornets, who saw their season derail when Kemba Walker was lost to injury, to 4 games out of the 8 seed with 9 games left. For their part, San Antonio took no great joy in blowing out Charlotte and Parker. “He is a legend, one of the greatest players to ever put on this jersey, and he helped my career tremendously,” Spurs guard Patty Mill said after the game.

LaMarcus Aldridge continued his stellar play with 28 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists, and DeMar DeRozan came off the bench for the second time in 3 games. DeRozan finished with 18 points.

San Antonio won for the 16th time in 17 games, but still trail the Warriors by one game for homecourt advantage in the Western Conference. The Spurs would need to make up two games, as the Warriors won the season series, 3-0, and hold the tiebreaker.

The Spurs took an 8 point lead into the locker room at halftime, but their lead ballooned to 20 in the 3rd as their defense stepped up and limited Charlotte to just 5-20 from the field in the 3rd.

Up Next: San Antonio returns home to face the 32-43 Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cavs still have faint playoff hopes, trailing the Magic by 3 games for the East's 8th seed.

San Antonio Spurs (57-18) at Charlotte Hornets (30-44)
Mar 26, 2019 1 2 3 4 Final San Antonio 30 26 26 35 117 Charlotte 24 24 14 27 89 Top Performers San Antonio Spurs LaMarcus Aldridge 28 PTS, 12 REB, 5 AST Dejounte Murray 14 PTS, 3 REB, 4 AST, 3 STL Charlotte Hornets Tony Parker 18 PTS, 6 AST	Team Stats Comparison SAS CHA FG Made-Att 48-87 55% 37-91 41% 3PT Made-Att 7-23 30% 5-17 29% FT Made-Att 14-17 82% 10-12 83% Rebounds 53 45 Assists 26 20 Turnovers 6 11 Steals 9 2 Blocks 4 3

[BobbyColtrane]

I started a game vs. the 32-43 Cavaliers, and was up 69-37 at the half when I realized that I have little interest in playing three of the worst teams in the NBA in a row right before the playoffs.

So I simmed to the end of that game and simmed two more games after that. The results:

• Game 76: Beat Cleveland 138-80
• Game 77: Beat Sacramento 122-89
• Game 78: Beat Atlanta 93-83

Notable Injury
With one week left in the regular season, Steph Curry has developed shoulder tendinitis in his left shoulder, an injury that is expected to last 6-8 weeks. He will be able to play through the injury, and should make a full recovery in either the Conference Finals or the Finals. But this injury could have big implications for the Warriors, who are now tied with San Antonio for the #1 seed in the Western Conference.

The Spurs are 60-18 with 4 games remaining and the Warriors are 59-18 with 5 games left. The Warriors hold the tiebreaker over San Antonio by virtue of their sweep of the season series.

Next up for the Spurs:
San Antonio faces the 41-36 Denver Nuggets, who are fighting for playoff positioning.

[BobbyColtrane]

114 107

Spurs outlast Nuggets to win 61st game of the season, 114-107

DENVER– The San Antonio Spurs won their 8th straight game and 20th of their last 21, beating the Nuggets 114-107. The Spurs got off to a fast start, beginning with a 9-2 run and controlling the action most of the way through. The loss dropped Denver to 7th place in the West, a half game behind the LA Clippers.

Up Next: San Antonio finishes the season versus three teams with losing records – the Wizards, Cavaliers and Mavs. San Antonio is in a virtual tie with Golden State for first in the West, but does not hold the tiebreaker.

San Antonio Spurs (61-18) at Denver Nuggets (41-37)
Apr 3, 2019 1 2 3 4 Final San Antonio 30 33 29 22 114 Denver 30 28 32 17 107 Top Performers San Antonio Spurs Dejounte Murray 22 PTS, 6 REB, 6 AST LaMarcus Aldridge 22 PTS, 12 REB, 3 AST, 3 BLK Denver Nuggets Jamal Murray 26 PTS, 5 AST Nikola Jokic 22 PTS, 11 REB	Team Stats Comparison SAS DEN FG Made-Att 44-86 51% 43-90 48% 3PT Made-Att 5-16 31% 9-25 36% FT Made-Att 21-22 95% 12-13 92% Rebounds 43 48 Assists 29 30 Turnovers 8 13 Steals 11 7 Blocks 8 2

[BobbyColtrane]

99 87

Spurs come crashing back to earth, fall to Wizards, 99-87

WASHINGTON DC– The San Antonio Spurs struggled to hit shots consistently and lost in Washington, 99-87. In one of their worst offensive performances of the year, the Spurs hit just 38% from the field and 27% from 3-point range after halftime. It was the Spurs' lowest point total since scoring just 85 points in a loss to Utah on December 9th.

For their part, the Wizards remain in contention for one of the East's last 2 playoff spots, and they showed how effective their retooled lineup can be when healthy. John Wall scored 18 points and dished 8 assists as Washington got strong contributions from Bradley Beal and Aaron Gordon.

Up Next: The Spurs travel to Cleveland to take on the 33-47 Cavaliers. San Antonio won the first meeting between the two this season, with their biggest margin of the year, 138-80.

San Antonio Spurs (61-19) at Washington Wizards (38-42)
Apr 5, 2019 1 2 3 4 Final San Antonio 24 25 20 18 87 Washington 27 25 23 24 99 Top Performers San Antonio Spurs DeMar DeRozan 22 PTS, 6 REB, 5 AST Washington Wizards Bradley Beal 20 PTS John Wall 18 PTS, 8 AST	Team Stats Comparison SAS WAS FG Made-Att 34-82 41% 40-89 45% 3PT Made-Att 7-22 32% 9-31 29% FT Made-Att 12-16 75% 10-13 77% Rebounds 52 52 Assists 21 29 Turnovers 10 11 Steals 10 4 Blocks 4 5

[BobbyColtrane]

116 96

Spurs wake up in 2nd half, beat Cleveland 116-96

CLEVELAND– It was a tale of two halves in Cleveland, as the Spurs trailed the Cavaliers by 9 at halftime but rallied to win 116-96.

“Pop used some colorful language to 'encourage' us at halftime,” Spurs guard DeMar DeRozan said after the game. The Spurs were outscored 35-20 in the 2nd quarter and went into the break trailing 58-49. But San Antonio began the 3rd with a 18-6 run en route to a 39-19 quarter and took control of the game.

LaMarcus Aldridge finished with the Spurs' first triple double of the season with 19 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists. DeMar DeRozan came off the bench for 8th time this season and seems to have settled into his role, scoring 23 points on 10 of 11 shooting and dishing out 6 assists.

Up Next: San Antonio returns home to close out the season, and face a familiar foe for the final time. Dirk Nowitzki has announced that he will retire after the season, making Wednesday's game against the Spurs the final game in his storied career.

San Antonio Spurs (62-19) at Cleveland Cavaliers (33-48)
Apr 7, 2019 1 2 3 4 OT Final San Antonio 29 20 39 28 116 Cleveland 23 35 19 19 96 96 Top Performers San Antonio Spurs LaMarcus Aldridge 19 PTS, 11 REB, 10 AST DeMar DeRozan 22 PTS, 3 REB, 6 AST Cleveland Cavaliers Jordan Clarkson 27 PTS, 4 AST	Team Stats Comparison SAS CLE FG Made-Att 46-82 56% 41-96 43% 3PT Made-Att 13-31 42% 9-31 29% FT Made-Att 11-13 85% 5-7 71% Rebounds 57 38 Assists 34 25 Turnovers 11 5 Steals 4 5 Blocks 3 2

[BobbyColtrane]

124 111

Spurs beat Mavs in final game of the season, 124-111

SAN ANTONIO– The Spurs finished the season out with a victory in the final game of Dirk Nowitzki's career, 124-111. Dirk finished with 19 points and 10 rebounds in a strong performance, but rejected any talk of coming back another year in the postgame interview session. “Its time. I have been lucky to have a fantastic career, lots of battles with the Spurs and Pop, and those guys were great to me tonight.”

It was a game of highs and lows for Dirk, as he hit a late three reminiscent of some of his great performances in this building. But his lack of mobility was apparent as DeMar DeRozan and Lonnie Walker both threw down vicious dunks on him during the game.

For their part, San Antonio treated this game as a playoff tuneup. With their fate sealed as the West's 2nd seed before tipoff, neither Aldridge nor DeRozan played after halftime. Lonnie Walker IV got his first significant playing time of the season and led the team with 24 points and 7 assists. “Lonnie definitely earned those minutes with his work all season, and we're excited to see what he can do next year” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said after the game.

Up Next: The regular season is over, and the Spurs exceeded all expectations with 63 wins, tied for the second-most in franchise history.

Now the playoffs will begin, with San Antonio matched up with the Denver Nuggets (41-41) in the first round.

PLAY OF THE GAME

Dirk hits one last three, to the chagrin of Gregg Popovich

NO RESPECT FOR HIS ELDERS

Spoiler

DeMar with a vicious slam over Dirk in transition

AND NOW, HIS WATCH HAS ENDED

Spoiler

Lonnie Walker IV dispels any notion of Dirk returning for another year

Dallas Mavericks (27-55) at San Antonio Spurs (63-19)
Apr 10, 2019 1 2 3 4 Final Dallas 28 18 29 36 111 San Antonio 30 30 32 32 124 Top Performers Dallas Mavericks Lonnie Walker IV 24 PTS, 7 AST Derrick White 19 PTS, 5 AST San Antonio Spurs Dirk Nowitzki 19 PTS, 10 REB Luka Doncic 11 PTS, 8 REB, 7 AST	Team Stats Comparison DAL SAS FG Made-Att 44-95 46% 45-87 52% 3PT Made-Att 9-25 36% 11-23 48% FT Made-Att 14-16 88% 23-26 88% Rebounds 48 52 Assists 28 31 Turnovers 9 10 Steals 6 9 Blocks 3 7

[Knickerbocker91]

Good luck in the playoffs, can't wait to see what the bracket looks like

[georgiafan]

yea good luck in the playoffs