SAN ANTONIO, United States // A big effort from the bench sent San Antonio to their 11th straight victory.
Manu Ginobili had 16 points to lead seven players in double figures, and the Spurs beat the New Orleans Pelicans 112-93 on Monday night
“The second team did a good job coming in and playing smart, aggressive basketball,” coach Gregg Popovich said. “They didn’t take anything for granted.”
San Antonio, who led by as many as 32 points, never trailed after Al-Farouq Aminu’s layup put New Orleans up 4-2 with 10:54 left in the first quarter.
The Spurs had 30 assists on their 44 field goals, continually making at least two passes on each possession compared to isolation plays and one-pass-and-shoot attempts by the Pelicans. New Orleans had 15 turnovers and finished with 21 assists, which was almost matched by San Antonio’s reserves (16).
“We’ve just got to play harder,” Pelicans big man Anthony Davis said. “They just came out and put it on us. It’s tough. We didn’t play with (any) effort. No energy. We didn’t care. We played like we didn’t care, and it kind of showed.”
Tony Parker had 14 points and seven assists, Tiago Splitter added 11 and Tim Duncan 10 for San Antonio (13-1). Reserves Marco Belinelli had 14 points, Boris Diaw scored 13 and Patty Mills 12.
Ryan Anderson had 17 points, Tyreke Evans and Jrue Holiday each added 12 points and Davis had 10 for New Orleans (6-7). The Pelicans, who have lost six straight in San Antonio, had a three-game winning streak snapped.
San Antonio matched their best start after 14 games and was again able to give their starters significant rest after rolling past Cleveland 126-96 on Saturday.
“We didn’t do a good job of (guarding and sharing the ball),” New Orleans coach Monty Williams said. “I thought their offence was as crisp as any offence we’ve ever seen. There were times when we were a bit discombobulated on the offensive end.”
The Spurs have seven double-digit victories during their streak, winning their last four by an average of 19 points.
“We’ve got a deep team,” Ginobili said. “We’re moving the ball really well. We’re making shots. The last five games, we made a ton of shots and we are playing focused. We’ve got 10 players that play every game. We’re all concentrating, and we’re hustling; we’re getting hands on loose balls. And then offensively, we’re just moving the ball, attacking quick and finding open teammates.”
Ginobili had another instant impact, making consecutive 3-pointers and then drawing a charge on Eric Gordon in his first 2 minutes as the Spurs took a 21-10 lead with 4 minutes left in the first quarter.
Ginobili had 11 points in his first 11 minutes, going 3-for-4 on 3-pointers, and finished with six assists and five rebounds.
The Spurs’ starters played an average of 20 minutes on Monday, with Splitter playing 14 after spraining his right ankle in the first half.
The Pelicans shot 38 percent from the field, going 37 for 97 while allowing the Spurs to shoot 54 percent.
San Antonio confounded New Orleans’ frontcourt with a defence led by Duncan and wings that kept collapsing on Davis and Jason Smith, who finished with eight points on 4-for-9 shooting.
“(The defence) was real active,” Duncan said. “Everyone was real active tonight. With good hands, we made it crowded for everybody. We got a lot of hands on balls. Danny (Green) did a great job in there. We had a lot of guys in there get some steals and turn them into offence. Just all in all, good team defence.”
OTHER MONDAY RESULTS
Heat 107, Suns 92
LeBron James scored a game-high 35 points, Dwyane Wade had 21 and a season-high 12 assists as Miami won their seventh consecutive game.
Wade returned to action this past Saturday against Orlando after missing two consecutive games with knee soreness. He was sharp in making nine of 13 shots for the defending champions Heat (11-3).
The Suns (7-7) had won two in a row after losing four straight, and again played without guard Eric Bledsoe (left shin contusion).
Pacers 98, Timberwolves 84
Guard George Hill scored a season-high 26 points to help the Indiana Pacers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Forward Paul George also scored 26 points for the Pacers (13-1), who won their fourth straight and improved on their franchise-best start.
Minnesota forward Kevin Love had 20 points and 17 rebounds, but he made just 6-of-20 field goals for the Timberwolves (8-8), who got off to a fast start this season but now have lost four of five.
Trail Blazers 102, Knicks 91
Nicolas Batum totaled 23 points, seven rebounds and six assists as Portland jumped out to a 17-point halftime lead and did not look back.
The Blazers (13-2) led wire to wire in pulling out their 11th straight win.
Carmelo Anthony dropped in 34 points and grabbed 15 rebounds for the Knicks (3-10), who lost for the sixth straight.
Rockets 93, Grizzlies 86
Chandler Parsons scored 17 points and reserve forward Omri Casspi added 16 to lead the Houston Rockets to a victory.
The Rockets opened the fourth quarter with a 14-2 run that gave them the lead for the first time since the opening minutes and positioned them for the win.
The Grizzlies played without reigning Defensive Player of the Year Marc Gasol, who injured his knee last week and is out for an indefinite period.
The Rockets were minus guard James Harden, who leads the team with a 24.2-point average and is nursing a foot injury.
Nuggets 110, Mavericks 96
Ty Lawson scored 19 points and Nate Robinson added 17 as the Denver Nuggets blew past Dallas.
Denver (7-6) beat the Mavericks for the second time in the last three days while Dallas (9-6) lost for the first time at home this season, falling to 7-1.
Celtics 96, Bobcats 86
Guard Jordan Crawford scored 21 points, hitting four 3-pointers in the first three quarters and then six free throws in the final minute, as the Boston Celtics beat the Charlotte Bobcats.
The Celtics (6-10) pulled away thanks to a 9-0 run to open the fourth quarter and went on to lead by as many as 12 down the stretch.
Pistons 113, Bucks 94
Guard Rodney Stuckey led seven Pistons in double figures with 17 points as Detroit sent the reeling Milwaukee Bucks to their ninth consecutive loss.
Brandon Jennings, who played his first four seasons with the Bucks before he was dealt to Detroit during the off-season, supplied 15 points and 13 assists for the Pistons (6-8).
Jazz 89, Bulls 83 (Overtime)
Rookie point guard Trey Burke, playing his first NBA home game, hit a big 3-pointer in overtime and scored 14 points as the Utah Jazz won their second game of the season.
The Jazz (2-14) had lost six consecutive this season and six to the Bulls.
The Bulls (6-7) fell for the fourth consecutive time, losing on the same day they lost former MVP Derrick Rose for the rest of the season due to knee surgery.
