SAN ANTONIO – A late three-pointer from Patty Mills lifted the San Antonio Spurs to a 116-110 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers (19-57) at the AT&T Center on Thursday night.
The win saw San Antonio bounce back from a loss to the Charlotte Hornets on Tuesday night. The victory also moved the Silver and Black within one game of securing a playoff spot where they are currently favored to be making a postseason appearance on bet-michigan.com.
“We played better in the second half,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “We played much better in the second half than we did in the first half. We were more physical, more focused and executed better.”
It was just the start to an emotional night as Spurs legend Manu Ginobili saw his No. 20 jersey be sent to the rafters in a postgame ceremony.
DeMar DeRozan scored 25 points to lead San Antonio while Bryn Forbes added 19 points and LaMarcus Aldridge chipped in 14.
San Antonio connected on 14 three-pointers on 33 attempts but none was bigger than Mills’ with 13.5 seconds remaining in the ball game. And it had everything to do with Ginobili’s jersey being sent to the rafters.
”It was good to feel that vibe and that energy in the building for something that’s bigger than our team,” Mills said. ”That’s what we are acknowledging tonight, someone who has sacrificed so much to this organization and has understood that the big picture is much bigger than himself.”
Cleveland was led by Collin Sexton’s 24 points and Kevin Love added 18 for Cleveland, who lost their fourth straight game.
Following the game, Spurs legend Tim Duncan, former Spur Tony Parker, Coach Popovich, and Fabricio Oberto came together to celebrate Ginobili’s 16-year NBA career in an hour-long ceremony before his No. 20 jersey was retired.
Ginobili ended the night with a thank you to the parents, family, the fans, Spurs organization, and teammates both on the Spurs and his Argentian National Team.
“Thank you all, here and those watching, for being with me all along. I love you,” he said.
UP NEXT:
The Spurs are now 43-32 on the season and will return to the court on Sunday night when they welcome the Sacramento Kings (37-38) to the AT&T Center at 6 pm Central Time.
