In a matchup largely outlined by the absence of their stars, the San Antonio Spurs edged previous the Memphis Grizzlies 111–101 Tuesday evening on the Frost Financial institution Heart, incomes their first dwelling win over the Grizzlies since January 2019. With out Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Citadel, the Spurs leaned on veteran poise and hard protection within the last quarter to eke out the win. De’Aaron Fox poured in 26 factors to steer the cost, whereas Harrison Barnes added 23 on 9-of-14 capturing. Barnes locked in down the stretch, fueling an 11-0 run for San Antonio within the last minutes to safe the win.
“We challenged him to be aggressive on each side of the ball,” head coach Mitch Johnson stated of Fox’s efficiency. “It’s robust, it’s quite a bit we’re asking of him proper now… He did that within the second half for certain. You may really feel when he does that, it elevates all people else.”
The sport was not at all times fairly. Regardless of lacking Ja Morant, Memphis charged out to an 8-0 lead within the first quarter, prompting Johnson to name an early timeout simply 90 seconds into the competition. The Spurs missed 10 of their first 12 makes an attempt, however regardless of the early deficit, they progressively discovered their rhythm. After that timeout, the Spurs pushed arduous as they outscored Memphis 23-16 the remainder of the body.
San Antonio chipped away on the Grizzlies’ lead through the use of higher ball motion and protection contained in the paint. With their backs in opposition to the wall with out Wembanyama and Citadel, they turned to their depth. Keldon Johnson had 18 factors off the bench to steer the second unit, whereas Kelly Olynyk added 10 factors. Devin Vassell additionally helped out with 10 factors.
The fourth quarter was the place San Antonio flipped the change: outscoring Memphis 25–14 within the last body to seal the win. In a last interval that noticed six ties and 12 lead adjustments, Barnes locked in down the stretch — scoring on a working hook, a nine-foot floater, and a 3-pointer to provide the Spurs a 107-101 lead with 53.2 seconds left. The Spurs clamped down defensively within the last body, holding the Grizzlies to only 14 factors within the last 12 minutes.
“Within the fourth quarter we had a extremely stable, disciplined, defensive staff effort that felt extra related than it did within the third quarter,” Johnson stated.
Subsequent Sport: vs. Atlanta Hawks on Thursday
The Spurs are actually 10-4 on the season and can welcome the Atlanta Hawks to the Frost Financial institution Heart on Thursday at 7 p.m. to shut out their five-game homestand. The Hawks (9-6) have been enjoying nicely however are with out star level guard Trae Younger, so it might even the enjoying area a bit for a depleted Spurs squad trying to shut out the homestand with a victory.
