Spurs pull away from Jazz, 96-89 in Utah.

Donovan Mitchell, rookie sensation, will still be on SportsCenter tonight for making some impressive plays, but the Spurs were too heavy here, despite a well-played competitive contest. Both teams shot around 43% and shot 35% from 3PT range, with Utah narrowly claiming the victory in rebounds. The Spurs defense was a notch more ahead here, scoring more as well as a cohesive unit on the court.

With six 3PTers, Patty Mills led the Spurs past their Salt Lake City rivals for 22 points. Pau Gasol had 20 points, but Kawhi Leonard nearly had a triple-double with 15 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists and 5 steals. Iman Shumpert came alive briefly for 13 points.

In the loss, Rudy Gobert played strong for 20 points and 10 rebounds, but Ricky Rubio had just 6 assists with 7 points on 3-18 shooting performance, including 0-6 from long range, as the Spurs hounded his passing lanes. Thabo Sefolosha had 15 points behind Gobert, with Jae Crowder's 14 points and 7 rebounds. Derrick Favors had 8 points with 7 rebounds and Donovan Mitchell finished with only 13 points, pestered by Kawhi Leonard and Shumpert all game long.

Spurs dominate 3rd quarter, win 110-93 in Portland.

The Spurs made fourteen 3PTers en route to a road win in the Moda Center over Dame Lillard and CJ McCollum, watching the Trail Blazers commit 23 atrocious turnovers. The 3rd quarter went 39-20, Spurs, with the 4th quarter not far behind at 37-28, also Spurs in this suddenly deafening blowout.

Mario Hezonja had one of those games that drew the Spurs interest in the playoffs last season, notching 25 points on a handful of daggers from deep coverage. Kawhi Leonard eased down at 23 points in just 20 minutes, but shot 9/24 despite sneaking 9 steals. Pau Gasol was big with 16 points and 14 rebounds. Rudy Gay also had 12 points and 9 rebounds, with Patty Mills chipping in 9.

Meanwhile, CJ McCollum had 15 points but shot just 6-16, followed by Evan Turner's fifteen points. Damian Lillard was mostly neutralized for just 10 points and 7 turnovers.

Spurs recover at home against Clippers, 81-99.

On the heels of a close OT loss to Dallas, the Spurs dominated the boards, shot better and totaled 12 steals in a solid home stand over the Clippers.

Pau Gasol had 24 points on 83% shooting with 6 rebounds. Rudy Gay had a nice game with 19 points and 7 rebounds, nabbing 3 steals. Tony Parker had 10 points with 7 assists and 4 steals, but shot just 4/14. Jeremy Lamb chipped in 10, also. Leonard had just 10 points in 14 minutes. Bismack Biyombo had 8 points, 6 rebounds and 3 blocks. Kyle O'Quinn seized 8 rebounds off the bench.

For LA, Danilo Gallinari had 15 points and 6 rebounds. Sweet Lou Williams was quiet with 12 points; Tobias Harris had 10 points with 10 rebounds but shot 5/14, with Patrick Beverley also scoring 10. Avery Bradley, still an appealing commodity to the Spurs GM, had a bad night on 2/15 shooting in this low-scoring defeat for the Clippers.

Spurs top Kings, 108-99 on the road.

De'Aaron Fox struggled in this game.

Davis Bertans banged home a 3PTer to end the first half, which gave the Spurs a 48-47 lead in a feisty fun game. The second quarter heated up for the defending champs after a sluggish start, with San Antonio trimming the lead to just 14-20 after one. Bismack Biyombo was a defensive monster with five early blocks, as was Kawhi Leonard a menace with 5 early steals. Jeremy Lamb was a pure spark-plug for the Spurs, scoring 14 points in the second quarter, making two 3PTers and a nice step-back jumper. Patty Mills also had a nice first half with 11 points off a trio of 3PT bombs.

For Sacramento, a lone highlight belonged to Vince Carter, who jammed it past Kawhi Leonard on the fast break, showing remnants of his once iconic athleticism. Buddy Hield led the half with 11 points for the Kings.

A strong third quarter would give the Spurs a 74-60 advantage that would hold firm until the final minutes of the final period, as the bench unit of prospects wavered the lead, before Jeremy Lamb and Mario Hezonja both hit huge 3PTers to regain control. Lamb would finish the contest with a ferocious jam down the lane, silencing the crowd with the and-one play. The Spurs won the 3rd quarter 31-20.

Coach Popovich pulled his starters out with 5 minutes left in the fourth quarter, given the considerable bench production that made for a confident-boosting turnout. If the Spurs can keep getting this synchronicity on a reliable basis, their odds look good for making another title run, with Bertans and Bryn Forbes (made active for this game) contributing well.

The Spurs nearly shot 50% from long range (14-31) and did shoot 50% for the game, besting Sacramento whose marksmen also had a nice showing. San Antonio proficiently won the battle for rebounds and assists, despite 13 turnovers. Jeremy Lamb finished with 20 points, with Patty Mills behind at 16 points, combining for seven 3PTers and 6 assists for Mills. Pau Gasol had 16 points with 7 rebounds. Kawhi Leonard finished with 14 points and 7 assists, taking just 13 shots in limited minutes. Davis Bertans had 11 points; Kyle O'Quinn had 9 points and 3 blocks, as Biyombo scored 8 points. Forbes finished with 6 on two 3PTers.

In the loss, Buddy Hield sparked the late rally for Sac-Town: 20 points, 4 assists on 50% shooting. Cauley-Stein had 14 points with 11 rebounds; Vince Carter had 13 points with 6 assists. De'Aaron Fox had 11 points with 8 assists but shot poorly on 3/13 efficiency. Z-Bo had just 8 points and 7 rebounds, bested by Gasol in the war down low.

Mavericks avenge loss, get OT win in San Antonio: 127-122.

The Mavericks would not be denied, despite going down by double digits a few times, rallying to tie the game late as Kawhi Leonard missed at the buzzer. Overtime would see them seize control and hold off the Spurs comeback, courtesy of a strong 3rd quarter swing, 32-17, spoiling Tony Parker's big night. Dallas finished on 54% shooting to San Antonio's 44%, a gutsy road victory, becoming just the second team to win at the AT&T Center.

How did they do it: Harrison Barnes had 29 points and 7 rebounds on 60% shooting; Dennis Smith Jr had 21 points with 8 assists; Nerlens Noel had a strong double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds; Wes Matthews had 15 points, 10 rebounds and 7 assists and LaMarcus Aldridge had 11 points with 14 rebounds. JJ Barea (pictured above) had 11 points and so did Seth Curry with 11 points, burning the Spurs whose defense let him shoot, watching him make a trio of 3PT bombs. All this production, yet Dirk Nowitzki had just 7 points in 18 minutes.

In the loss, Kawhi Leonard had 23 points and 7 steals after a quiet first half. Pau Gasol had 20 points with 9 rebounds, Jeremy Lamb had 19 points. The highlight, despite the loss, was 19 points and 9 assists by Tony Parker, a pleasant sight that gave the Spurs a chance due to Patty Mills' 1/13 shooting night. Bismack Biyombo had 12 rebounds with 7 points, 4 steals and 3 blocks.

In the end, it was a rare loss at home to end the season series in this bitter rivalry.

Spurs fall hard to Rockets, ice cold in 4th quarter: 86-108.

The win streak ended in Houston today, but not after two competitive quarters that saw the Spurs take the lead, if only for a moment. It was a sight watching the Rockets offense score so strongly, shooting 52% for the game against a paltry 33% by San Antonio in what turned into a blowout.

Houston went on a 16-0 run in the final quarter, 24-11 overall and also winning the 3rd quarter. The Spurs made just one more 3PTer than they had at halftime by the end of the game, a sad outcome. Kawhi Leonard had a severe drop-off point from his first half fight with James Harden (who also cooled off), with "The Beard" dropping a cool 20+ on him.

The Spurs burst out of the second quarter on a 10-0 run to make it a game, showing off its substantial firepower as well to trim the lead to 38-41, after going down 28-39 to end the first quarter. The game was 60-62 at halftime, but the stats revealed the future: Houston shot 57% to SA's 41%, even though San Antonio was drawing more free throws, both teams knotted at six three-pointers at the midway point.

Harden finished with 31 points on 54% shooting, making four 3PTers to boot. Chris Paul had a strong game with 23 points and 10 assists. Trevor Ariza had 17 points with 7 rebounds and 6 assists. Clint Capela had a double-double, 10 points and 11 rebounds. Off the bench, Joe Johnson had 8 points and P.J. Tucker had 7 points.

In the loss, Kawhi Leonard went a chilling 0-9 from long range, shooting 31% on 7-22 shooting, barely scoring more than his first half with 20 points. Mario Hezonja had 12 points, Patty Mills had 11, but was ice cold from long range. Pau Gasol had 10&8 and Jeremy Lamb scored 11 points.

Spurs dominate Mavericks on road, 97-84.

Davis Bertans erupted for 26 points in Dallas.

The Spurs did not expect prospect Davis Bertans to light up the Mavericks like he did, hustling for 26 points and knocking home two longballs. Behind him, Pau Gasol had 22 points and 9 rebounds on 72% shooting.

Jeremy Lamb also had a nice night with 21 points, making four threes. Patty Mills had 8 assists, as well. Kawhi Leonard mostly sat this one out, heading to the bench after a 31-17 first quarter beat-down by San Antonio.

In the loss, Dennis Smith Jr had 18 points; Wes Matthews had 14 points, Harrison Barnes had 10 but no Maverick shot the ball particularly well, with Matthews struggling the most.

The Spurs also benefited from 20 offensive rebounds.