Despite a 35-point, nine rebound performance by LaMarcus Aldridge, the Spurs could not manage to outlast the Los Angeles Clippers Tuesday night on the road. The Spurs, who ended with 110 points, had 4 players in double digits, including Aldridge.
Led again by none other than LaMarcus Aldridge who had 28 points and nine rebounds, the Spurs fell to the Los Angeles Lakers in overtime, 122 – 112. Dejounte Murray ended with 23 points and 10 rebounds in the loss.
Spurs 116 – Trailblazers 105
Needing two wins out of their three remaining games to clinch a playoff berth, the Spurs beat the Trailblazers 116-105 for their 10th home win in a row and a 32-8 home record. LaMarcus Aldridge led the way for the Spurs with 28 points and eight rebounds. Perhaps the biggest story of the night came from 40-year-old Manu Ginobili who shot 100% from the field on 7-for-7 shooting for a total of 17 points on the night. An incredible eight consecutive points from Manu on three consecutive possessions helped seal the deal for the huge win against the Trailblazers.
Week in Review
The Spurs, who last Sunday beat the league’s top seed Houston Rockets 100-83, had won 8 of their previous 10 games when getting the win against Houston on Easter. Since then, the Spurs continued their struggle on the road losing both of their road games this week to extend their road losing streak to 7 road games. The last win the Spurs have gotten on the road came on February 25th against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Spurs have had some great performances over the last few weeks as they look to have finally put aside the uncertainty of the whole Kawhi Leonard drama that has plagued this team for the last few months. After Manu Ginobili’s statement that expecting the return of Leonard was only hurting the silver and black, San Antonio won six games in a row, and greatly improved their chance at a playoff appearance.
Still, while the Spurs have proven they can perform extremely well at home, they have to win on the road to perform well in the playoffs, if they make it into the playoffs. For the first time in 21 years, the Spurs are faced with the possibility of missing the playoffs, a rare and unheard of occurrence for the successful franchise.
Looking Ahead
With only one game remaining in the regular season, the Spurs will head to New Orleans to go head-to-head with the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday night.