The Sacramento Kings hadn’t won in San Antonio since January of 2012, a span of eight games coming into Sunday’s matchup. While they jumped out to an early lead, the Spurs had no trouble reeling the Kings in and making it nine straight at the AT&T Center.
Tony Parker put in a vintage performance in the 118-102 victory for San Antonio. Playing in his 16th NBA season, the 34-year-old guard managed to post 16 points on 8-for-10 shooting and chipped in seven assists in just 20 minutes of action.
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Big man LaMarcus Aldridge, who rested the last time these two teams met, scored 18 points and grabbed eight rebounds.
Pau Gasol added 22 points and nine rebounds off Gregg Popovich’s bench. David Lee added 11 points and All-Star forward Kawhi Leonard finished the night with 12 points, but shot just 3-for-12 from the field as the Spurs won their 53rd win of the season..
Rookie Buddy Hield shook off back-to-back sub-par performances to post solid numbers. The 23-year-old broke down the Spurs defense to hit runners in the lane, finishing the night with 18 points on 8-of-14 shooting and added five rebounds and five assists.
Garrett Temple got hot from the perimeter, knocking down 3-for-3 from long range on his way to 15 points and four assists.
NBA
Willie Cauley-Stein finished with 18 points, five assists and four rebounds. Skal Labissiere chipped in 14 points on 7-of-9 shooting and hit the glass for seven rebounds and Georgios Papagiannis grabbed 10 rebounds and scored six points in 24 minutes of action.
STANDOUT PERFORMER
Parker isn’t the same player that helped lead the Spurs to four championships over his storied career, but he can still get to the rim with the best of them.
TURNING POINT
It was a competitive game early, but the Spurs outscored the Kings by 15 in the second quarter and 16 in the third to run away with the victory.
INJURY UPDATE
Ben McLemore and Arron Afflalo both missed the game to to personal issues. Tyreke Evans missed his second straight game with a sore left ankle. Rookie Malachi Richardson is out another week or two with a right hamstring thickness tear. Rudy Gay is out for the year with a torn left Achilles.
WHAT'S NEXT
The Kings travel back to Sacramento following the game where they will face the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday before heading back out on the road to face the Warriors Friday.