Spurs-76ers Preview

By JEFF BARTL
Posted Feb 07 2012 1:59PM

The Philadelphia 76ers have answered their critics by knocking off some of the league's fiercest competition recently.

Beating the San Antonio Spurs for a fifth straight time at home would be another boost to the Atlantic Division leaders.

Philadelphia seeks its league-leading 14th home victory Wednesday night when it faces San Antonio, which has won five straight and is in the midst of a nine-game road trip.

The 76ers (18-7) feasted on weaker competition in the early going, with only one victory during their 10-3 start coming against a team which is currently above .500.

They've been just as good against the league's heavyweights lately. They beat Orlando on Jan. 30 and routed Eastern Conference-leading Chicago two nights later, then won at Atlanta on Saturday before defeating the Los Angeles Lakers 95-90 on Monday.

Philadelphia has won six of seven - the lone loss came to Miami - and the win over the Lakers improved its home record to 13-3.

"The league should be looking at us as a poster of a real team the way we play every night," coach Doug Collins said.

The schedule doesn't get any easier for the rest of this three-game homestand with two division leaders coming to town - the streaking Spurs and the Los Angeles Clippers.

San Antonio (17-9) followed an impressive 107-96 win over West-leading Oklahoma City on Saturday with Monday's 89-84 win at Memphis to open its longest road trip of the season. The fifth consecutive victory marks the team's longest win streak since an eight-game run Jan. 7-21, 2011.

Tony Parker had 21 points and Tim Duncan added 19 with a season-high 17 rebounds.

Parker said coach Gregg Popovich has been spreading out minutes among the roster, especially given the injury to Manu Ginobili and the condensed schedule. The Spurs don't have anyone among the league's top 35 players in minutes per game.

Popovich said he expects Ginobili, out since breaking his hand Jan. 2, to return during the road trip.

"I think Pop tries to keep us fresh," said Parker, who averages a team-high 33.8 minutes. "It's rare that me, or anyone, plays 40 minutes. Over the course of the season, if you have to play 38 or 40 minutes a game, it's tough. It takes its toll."

The travel over the next three weeks may take its toll, especially for a team that's only 4-8 on the road.

San Antonio won't play another home game until Feb. 29, and it is allowing 98.3 points per game on the road compared to 89.4 at home, where it has gone 13-1.

The Spurs have lost four straight and nine of 11 at Philadelphia, where Parker has totaled 11 points on 4-of-19 shooting in his last two visits. He's averaged 26.3 points in four games this month.

Sixth man Lou Williams has been the 76ers' top scorer, averaging 15.5 points, and he scored 14 of his 24 in the fourth quarter Monday. It marked the sixth time Williams has scored in double figures in the fourth.

"From the start of my basketball career, and for as long as I could remember, I've always played well in the fourth quarter," Williams said. "I know that's the most important time of a basketball game."

Williams was 3 of 13 from the field for six points in a 77-71 win over the Spurs in the most recent meeting Feb. 11, though Jrue Holiday picked up the slack with a game-high 27 points.

Duncan has averaged 11.0 points on 35.1 percent shooting in his last three games versus the Sixers.

The home team has won the last eight meetings.

Parker scores 37, leads Spurs over 76ers 100-90

By ROB MAADDI
Posted Feb 08 2012 10:21PM

PHILADELPHIA (AP) Of all the impressive numbers on Tony Parker's stat sheet, perhaps the most eye-popping was zero fouls.

Parker scored 37 points, Gary Neal added 18 off the bench and the San Antonio Spurs beat the Philadelphia 76ers 100-90 in a matchup of division leaders Wednesday night.

Tim Duncan had 16 points and 11 rebounds and Tiago Splitter scored 15 for the Southwest Division-leading Spurs.

Parker shot 12 for 24, made all 13 of his free throws and handed out eight assists. He played 38 minutes and never got whistled for a foul.

"I play team defense," Parker said with a smile.

Lou Williams led Philadelphia with 22 points. Andre Iguodala had 17 and Thaddeus Young scored 16.

The Atlantic Division-leading Sixers fell to 4-2 during a seven-game stretch that coach Doug Collins termed "Death Row" because of the quality of their opponents. After building a strong record early in the season against lesser competition, they beat Orlando, Chicago, Atlanta (on the road) and the Los Angeles Lakers. Their other loss was at home to Miami.

"This is a team that when you make a mistake, they will make you pay dearly for it," Collins said. "I have great admiration for them. Gregg Popovich is one of the best coaches in all of sports. They've done a great job without (Manu) Ginobili."

The Spurs are a much different team on the road. But they outplayed the Sixers throughout to improve to 5-8 away from home. They're 13-1 in their own building.

Down 83-71 near the midpoint of the fourth quarter, the Sixers scored seven straight points and had the crowd rocking after Jrue Holiday's 3-pointer. But Neal answered with his fourth 3-pointer of the night and his free throw a minute later after Williams got a technical foul gave the Spurs an 89-80 lead.

Williams hit a 3 to cut the deficit to 95-90 with 1:46 left. But Parker nailed a jumper and Philadelphia couldn't get any closer.

"Just one of those games everything was working for me," Parker said. "My shot was feeling good and everything was going."

Starting center Spencer Hawes didn't play for the Sixers. Hawes had missed 10 games with an Achilles injury before returning to play the previous two. Elton Brand returned to the lineup after sitting out two games with a sprained thumb, and had 11 points and 13 rebounds.

The Sixers missed Hawes' presence in the middle as the Spurs repeatedly drove to the basket for layups and finished with 54 points in the paint.

"They share the ball and Tony's been special," Popovich said. "He's playing unselfish basketball and good defense."

The Sixers committed just four turnovers to help them overcome a 55-30 rebounding deficit in a 95-90 win over Kobe Bryant and the Lakers on Monday night. They had four turnovers in the first 11 minutes against the Spurs, and 10 in the game.

Matt Bonner's 3-pointer capped a 17-6 run and gave San Antonio its biggest lead, 71-59, to that point. Williams hit a pair of 3s of his own and the Sixers got within 75-67 after three quarters.

Iguodala kicked off a 10-0 run with a jumper and Young finished it off with a layup that put the Sixers up 38-36 in the second quarter.

Parker scored 10 of San Antonio's next 12 points and the Spurs took a 48-45 lead at halftime. All of San Antonio's 22 points in the second quarter were either on layups or free throws.

Neal, who averages 8.5 points per game, had 12 in the first quarter on three 3-pointers and 4-for-4 shooting - all in the last half of the period.

"He hurt us early and we can't let that happen," Iguodala said. "We have to be more alert. We have to keep aware of guys who can hurt us and try and not let them get good looks."

Notes: The Sixers shot just 11 free throws, making seven. The Spurs were 21 of 26 from the line. Collins declined to comment on the disparity in the attempts. He was clearly unhappy with some of the calls during the game. ... Hawes had MRIs on his left Achilles and his lower back. Both were negative. ... This was the second of nine straight road games for the Spurs, who are on their annual extended road trip because of the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo. The Spurs will return to the AT&T Center on Feb. 29 vs. Chicago. ... The Sixers finish up the toughest portion of their schedule Friday night when the Pacific Division-leading Los Angeles Clippers visit. ... Splitter, a second-year forward, and forward Kawhi Leonard of the Spurs along with second-year swingman Evan Turner of the Sixers were selected to play in the Rising Stars challenge during All-Star weekend.

Notebook: Spurs 100, Sixers 90

Posted Wednesday February 8, 2012 10:09PM

By Andy Jasner, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Tony Parker played one of his best games all season with 37 points and eight assists as the San Antonio Spurs defeated the Philadelphia 76ers 100-90 Wednesday night at the Wells Fargo Center. Gary Neal scored 18 points while Tim Duncan had 16 points and 11 rebounds. The Spurs (18-9) improved to 2-0 on their season-long nine-game road trip. They also have won six straight overall.

Lou Williams paced the Sixers (18-8) with 22 points while Andre Iguodala had 17. Thaddeus Young scored 16 points, Jrue Holiday had 15 and Elton Brand contributed a double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds. The Sixers fell to 13-4 at home and had a four-game home winning streak snapped against the Spurs.

QUOTABLE: "His basketball IQ is off the charts."
-- Spurs coach Gregg Popovich on Tiago Splitter's 15-point performance in 17 minutes.

THE STAT: Parker was 13-for-13 from the free-throw line. Additionally, he played 38 minutes and wasn't whistled for a personal foul.

TURNING POINT: Every time the Sixers inched closer down the stretch, Parker and Duncan responded. After Williams hit a huge 3-pointer to cut the lead to 95-90, Parker came right back with a difficult jumper to extend the lead back to seven.

HOT: Splitter was quite effective off the bench for the Spurs and displayed a soft touch as well. Splitter shot 7-for-10.

NOT: Jodie Meeks missed four of his five shots for the Sixers and never found his rhythm on this night.

QUOTABLE II: "I love playing pick-and-roll with Tiago. He's always in perfect position."
-- Tony Parker on Tiago Splitter.

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Not only was Neal an offensive threat, but he added six assists, five rebounds and one blocked shot.

INSIDE THE ARENA: It wasn't quite as electric as the last two games against the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers, but the crowd was quite energetic. The last two games were sellouts and an impressive crowd of 18,070 showed up for the Spurs.

QUOTABLE III: "When he's attacking the basket, he's incredibly tough to stop."
-- Elton Brand on Tony Parker.

GOOD MOVE: Duncan received plenty of rest through the first three quarters, which allowed him to be fresh in the all-important fourth.

BAD MOVE: The Sixers could have double-teamed Parker a bit more to get the ball out of his hands.

ROOKIE WATCH: Spurs swingman Kawhi Leonard had two points and three rebounds. Guard Cory Joseph was scoreless in a very brief 25-second stint. Sixers forward Nikola Vucevic made his fourth start of the season and was 0-for-4 from the field. He did sweep six rebounds, however. Lavoy Allen scored two points, grabbed nine rebounds and had three blocked shots.

NOTABLE: Williams received a technical foul with 5:40 left in regulation ... Spurs guard Manu Ginobili remained out with a broken hand. ... Sixers center Spencer Hawes was out with a strained left Achilles. Hawes missed 10 straight games, returned for two and then re-aggravated the injury. But a pair of MRIs came back negative on his back and Achilles. ... Brand's double-double was his fifth this season. ... The Sixers had a season-low four steals. ... The Spurs committed a season-low seven turnovers. ... The Sixers fell to 0-5 when allowing 100 or more points. They were 6-25 last season. ... The reserves for the 2012 All-Star Game will be announced on Thursday with Iguodala and Williams having a legitimate chance of making it for the first time. "It would be good," Iguodala said. "I do think I deserve to be there."

NEXT: For the Spurs, Saturday @ New Jersey, Tuesday @ Detroit, Wednesday @ Toronto. For the Sixers, Friday vs. L.A. Clippers, Saturday @ Cleveland, Monday @ Charlotte.

• Spurs: Ford, Ginobili
• 76ers: Brackins

• Spurs: --
• 76ers: Williams

• Lead Changes: 11
• Times Tied: 7

• Arena: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA
• Officials: #43 Dan Crawford, #72 J.T. Orr, #12 Violet Palmer
• Attendance: 18070
• Duration: 2:06