Spurs prevail against Celtics, 106-109, win streak rises to 11.

Kawhi Leonard made a go-ahead layup after a fabulous steal.

With ten seconds left in the game, Kawhi Leonard ripped the ball away and sped up the court. Boston's defense recovered, but Leonard made a tough layup at the basket, giving the Spurs a 107-106 lead with 7 seconds left. Boston would miss their next shot, as Biyombo passed the ball back to Leonard, who made clutch free throws, forcing Gordon Hayward (30 points) into a 3PTer, which missed at the buzzer.

The Spurs were lucky to prevail here, having given Boston control late in this game due to the stellar play of Kyrie Irving (26 points) dashing to the basket over two defenders like clockwork. Iman Shumpert and Pau Gasol were strong aid to Kawhi tonight, though, and so San Antonio was able to remain nearly flawless at home and win the season series over the Celtics. Their win streak now climbs to 11 straight, with a three-game road trip to follow.

Mario Hezonja banged home four 3PTers in this game off the bench. Jeremy Lamb showcased his athleticism with some nice fast-break dunks for 6 points, despite struggling from long range. Kawhi had a quiet game until the second half, finishing with 20 points after having only 9 at halftime. He shot 7/11 from the field, but just 1/4 from long range. That lone longshot was vital to the comeback, however, as the Spurs were nearly out of contention when his three points made it a 1-PT game again.

Shumpert finished with 18 points, showing off his long range ability with 4 bombs, nabbing one steal as well and trying to slow down Kyrie Irving as Leonard was tasked with Hayward. Rudy Gay had 9 points and 3 steals which helped keep the victor up for grabs. Patty Mills got free late in the final period, also, making Boston pay with two 3PTers in a quiet night. He also got a payback layup after Hayward jammed a dunk past Shumpert on the previous play. Dejounte Murray made two nice layups inside, whereas Tony Parker struggled in this one. Bismack Biyombo had 9 rebounds with 2 blocks.

Meanwhile, Pau Gasol went for 26 points (12-18 from the floor) with 6 rebounds, dominating the paint for the Spurs and excelling in the pick-and-roll. For Boston: Hayward shot 4-7 from long range for 30 points; Kyrie went 11-18, making just one 3PTer with 6 assists. Marcus Morris had a strong game with 23 points and--count 'em--five threes with 7 rebounds. Al Horford had a quiet showing with 8 points against Gasol, but Greg Monroe gave 10 points with 6 rebounds.

Spurs edge Thunder, 109-103.

In thrilling entertainment, the Spurs won a close road game over the OKC Thunder. Exchanging dominance in the third (OKC, 33-22) and fourth (SA, 39-30) quarters led to a dramatic finish.

The Spurs shot 47% and the Thunder shot 53%. Both teams were nearly perfect from the free throw line, with OKC missing just one. The rebound war was closely won by the Thunder, 40-35, but the Spurs had the most second chances.

Kawhi Leonard, once again, led the way for the  villainous visitors, with 34 points, 10-22 from the field. Not far behind was Patty Mills, who finally had a breakout game: 25 points on 52% shooting that included a handful of 3PTers. Pau Gasol finished out the trio with 19 points, 8-14. Bismack Biyombo owned the paint with 13 rebounds and 4 blocks to go with 8 points. Jeremy Lamb chipped in 9 points as San Antonio's lone bench success story.

Meanwhile, Russell Westbrook had 17 points, 6 rebounds with 11 assists on 61% shooting. Four turnovers marred an otherwise strong showing. Paul George had 15 points, but struggled with his shot at 7-17 and an 0-4 goose egg from long range. Steven Adams had 14 points with 7 rebounds and 1 block. Patrick Patterson chipped in 13 points with 6 rebounds and Carmelo Anthony had 11 points with 13 rebounds. Carmelo did not shoot well, though at just 5-14 and 1-5 from deep as the Thunder drop to just 12-10 on the season.

The Spurs are at the top of the west and the entire league with a 21-3 record, 12-1 at home and 9-2 on the road. Not far behind, as always, are the Cavaliers (19-4), Warriors (16-7) and Celtics (15-9, 8G win streak). The season is shaping up to be full of excitement as western titans go at it time and time again.

Spurs storm past Pistons, overcome 15-point deficit.

Kawhi Leonard led the Spurs to a huge comeback.

It looked to be over by the end of the third quarter. The Spurs offense had struggled with scoring all game long, even its star players, and the Pistons had shown up with a gutsy road effort to obtain a dominant 15-point advantage, 75-60.

Then the rally happened, 10-2, led by Kawhi Leonard and Patty Mills--both showing a pure stroke from long range and sensational court vision--as the home team's defense finally woke up, stifling the Pistons as they tried to hold on to the lead, now 82-78. A huge 3PTer by Mills gave the Spurs the lead and Kawhi Leonard kept firing through the net. Blake Griffin's windmill jam and impressive perimeter ball later brought the lead back up to eight points, before Leonard stole the ball and knocked home a transition 3PTer.

A slick pass by Mills gave Kawhi another good look after a missed shot down low by Detroit, cutting the lead to just two; Leonard would steal the ball again and make the game-tying layup, capping another 8-0 run by San Antonio.

Andre Drummond would pull up from mid range, an air-ball caught by Gasol leading to a quick dribble-away by Mills on the left wing into a step-back 3PTer, holding his follow-through to make it an 11-0 run, 92-89: San Antonio with two minutes left to play in regulation. Mills would bang home another 3PTer and the Spurs would hold onto the lead, winning 93-100 in a mountainous turnaround.

The Pistons played three strong quarters of basketball, but missed some tough shots when it mattered. They shot 50% compared to 40% by San Antonio and also shot better from long range, winning 24-16 in the second quarter and 32-26 in the third quarter. Yet the Spurs crushed them in the final period, 17-35.

Most notably, Jeremy Lamb whiffed on defense and couldn't make a shot early. Patty Mills also had a rough start, 2-10 from the floor, missing shots within the 3PT line as well. Kawhi's strong finish was not a sure thing, given also his struggle early to be effective. Rudy Gay also got denied time and time again down low, going up against Blake Griffin. Luckily, Pau Gasol was able to compensate with his skill set and 7'0" stature. Bismack Biyombo swatted some shots for good measure, also nabbing some impressive put-back dunks and lay-ins.

Kawhi Leonard finished with 27 points, 7 assists and a career-high 9 steals (previously 7) with 2 blocks. Patty Mills had 25 points, followed by 13 points and 12 rebounds by Pau Gasol. Biyombo had 10 & 10. For Detroit, Drummond had 18 points with 12 rebounds. Luke Kennard, the former Blue Devil, had 15 points. Blake Griffin had just 12 points and 9 rebounds. Reggie Jackson also had a poor game with just 9 points, managing 7 assists in the loss. Ish Smith had 13 points.

Spurs top Grizzlies in double-header series, 81-98; 105-88.

The Spurs came out ahead over the Grizzlies in a home/away exchange, winning both times after a contentious fight for most of each game. It took two big runs and strong defensive pressure to pull in front, with star power by Kawhi Leonard and solid bench contributions by Rudy Gay and Bryn Forbes.

Gay had 24 @Memphis and Forbes came alive for 17 points on 5 three-pointers. Gay also knocked in two long-shots with 8 rebounds. Leonard had 20 points and 7 steals on 81% shooting to cap off the 10-0 to end the 3rd quarter. The Grizzlies committed a shot clock violation, stifled by the Spurs on the final possession of the game.

Patty Mills had 13 points as he still struggles from the field this season. Shumpert got called for a foul on a made-layup early, but it ignited his spirit as he jammed over the Memphis defense and made a corner 3PTer for 9 points. Bismack Biyombo had 6 points, 6 rebounds and 4 blocks--including a couple of Marc Gasol, who finished with 20 points and 15 rebounds, 2 blocks. Mario Chalmers played nicely filling in for Mike Conley for 24 points and 10 assists. However, the bench by Memphis gave only scarce help. For San Antonio, the other Gasol had just 6 points and 7 rebounds.

In the first loss in San Antonio, Marc Gasol had 19 points with 16 rebounds and JaMychal Green had 16 points with 11 rebounds. But it was all Spurs in this one: Kawhi with 24 points on just 40% shooting; Rudy Gay with another strong performance of 23 points and 12 rebounds with 7 steals. Pau Gasol had 17 points and 6 rebounds, with the rest of the Spurs struggling, especially from long range. 35-24 fourth quarter dominance was enough to do in Memphis on the road, however. Back in Memphis, the Spurs also slayed the Grizzlies in the final period, 28-15 as Memphis committed 17 turnovers.

Spurs recover with 8-0 run to defeat Hornets, 90-79

Pau Gasol had 28 points in this road victory.

Pau Gasol was the constant in this game, scoring a team-high 28 points with 7 rebounds on 70% shooting. Charlotte was outplaying the Spurs in the second quarter, taking an eight-point lead into halftime courtesy of a monster dunk by Dwight Howard over undersized Mario Hezonja. D12 finished with a Hornets-high 15 points and 7 rebounds.

In a relatively low scoring contest, it didn't take much to outlast the Hornets and recuperate from an early beating. Mario Hezonja got his revenge with 19 points on 5-8 shots from deep, quelling any hometwon momentum by Charlotte. Bryn Forbes helped out with a pair of threes also, whereas Patty Mills went 2-10 and 0-8 from 3PT territory.

Every other player had a quiet night: Kyle O'Quinn got some burn in this game, with 7 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Iman Shumpert chipped in 9 points. Kawhi Leonard had a modest showing with just 7 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists. Rudy Gay went just 2-7.

For Charlotte, Kidd-Gilchrist had 13 points with 6 rebounds; Kemba Walker was just 6-16 for 13 points. Nicolas Batum had a quiet 12 points on 5/14 shooting. The Hornets boasted a big run in the second quarter, 15-7, but the Spurs fought back and stopped the buzzing. San Antonio won the 3rd quarter, 27-15 after losing the second 21-27. The Spurs tough defense stopped Charlotte's chances, missing layups when it mattered most.

Spurs struggle early, rise up over Pelicans to win 97-90.

Sharpshooter Bryn Forbes hit a deep dagger late.

The Pelicans put a whooping on the Spurs early, going up by 8 after one quarter and leading by 11 at halftime. Leave it to the Spurs to recuperate and then retaliate, throwing down blow for blow in a brief brawl before blitzing past the home team in the Big Easy. N'awlins would fight back, including some feisty defense by Rajon Rondo on Patty Mills, but they would fall short to the Spurs, forced to watch Kawhi Leonard (23 points) drain a cold-blooded long 3PTer in isolation that all but sealed the outcome.

Preceding this was a tough matchup problem for the Spurs, pulling Rudy Gay early and swapping in Pau Gasol to better contend size for size against DeMarcus Cousins. Anthony Davis would have 25 points to lead the Pelicans, and Cousins would only have 15 points in the outing despite some strong plays to keep the early lead.

Pau Gasol matched Cousins with 15 points, drawing fouls and also showing off his soft touch from beyond. Rudy Gay also splashed home a 3PTer, as did Patty Mills here and there. Tony Parker even had a decent showing here for San Antonio in a feelgood, resilient road effort culminating in an 11-0 run in the 3rd quarter to set the tone for the final period. The Spurs pulled away with solid defense and playmaking.

The Spurs now move to 15-3, topping the western conference so far.

Spurs fly past Hawks, 105-111.

After a tight first quarter, the Spurs burst out to a sizable lead and the shooting display only improved from there, with Patty Mills and Kawhi Leonard making some nice long shots as well as Mario Hezonja. Iman Shumpert got the team going first, and then it was some fury shown by Jeremy Lamb's athleticism that kept the lead, shooting 53% at halftime as a team. The 42-57 advantage was capped off by Kawhi Leonard's 16 points on 6-7 shooting and a shot from just past the half-court line with .6 left on the clock.

Atlanta would come alive in the second half, especially in the fourth quarter, cutting the lead to 10 points and then getting within six, showing talent from long range due to Ilyasova, but it was a clutch 3PTer combo by Mills and Leonard that sealed the win.

Both teams made 11 shots from deep, but the Spurs defense was the key factor here, as Biyombo swatted the ball this way and elsewhere when Atlanta went for the basket down low. Kawhi sleepwalked to 29 points on 11/15 shooting (73%, and 4/6 from 3PT--66%) with 8 rebounds and 6 steals. Mario Hezonja had the "magic" touch tonight: he had 18 points on 7/9 shooting, making 4 shots from deep also. Patty Mills had 13 points and 9 assists, making a trio of threes.

Bismack Biyombo dominated the paint with 14 rebounds and a refreshing 12 points with 4 blocks. Pau Gasol had a solid 10 points with 8 rebounds. Jeremy Lamb's early burst stopped at 19 points and Rudy Gay had flashes for 9 points. Kyle O'Quinn finished with 6 points and 5 rebounds and a block.

In the loss, Dennis Shroder had 16 points with 7 assists, former Spur Dewayne Dedmon had 11 points with 8 rebounds. Malcolm Delaney had 11 points, and Ersan Ilyasova had 15 points with 7 rebounds. Kent Bazemore hit a pair of nice shots from long range, but had just 8 points on 3/9 shooting overall.