SAN ANTONIO – The San Antonio Spurs held on for a 107-102 victory over the Miami Heat (29-13) at the AT&T Center on Sunday afternoon.
The win was the third in the last six games for San Antonio, who began the first night of a back-to-back set. The win came on an afternoon when the Spurs honored Patty Mills and his culture.
“It’s an important night and it’s really important to Patty,” Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich said. “For the indigenous people here in Texas it’s important to all of us, but it’s sort of double for him because of his history and his background.”
Miami was led by Bam Adebayo’s 21 points and 16 rebounds while shooting 61 percent from the floor. Goran Dragic added 19 points while Kendrick Nunn chipped in 18 for Miami, who fell below .500 on the road.
Three Standout Players
LaMarcus Aldridge
The Spurs’ big man continues to put up astounding numbers and did so once again on Sunday afternoon to help the Silver & Black earn the season series split with Miami.
Aldridge finished with 21 points on 53 percent shooting to go along with four rebounds and three assists. He did his damage from the inside and outside, hitting his signature midrange jump shot and played a good game defensively, holding off the Heat big men in the second half.
Patty Mills
The Spurs got a big name out of Patty Mills on an afternoon they honored him and his culture.
Mills scored 18 points off the bench, hitting four of his 10 3-point attempts. He added five rebounds and three assists as he led San Antonio’s second unit for the second straight while Rudy Gay was out with an undisclosed illness.
“He didn’t play as he did because of that; he does that every night,” Popovich said. “His energy has been there his whole career. It’s who he is.”
DeMar DeRozan
DeRozan has been on a tear as of late, scoring at will and hitting 50 percent of his shots. That streak came to an end on Sunday but he still managed to put up some solid numbers.
He finished with 20 points, nine rebounds, and nine assists on the night. He led the team down in the stretch with big shots and finding his teammates for buckets to help the Spurs hold on to their lead and get the win.
“We fresh off a feeling of letting a game slip away from us,” DeRozan said. “Being right back in that position, just kind of understanding how hard we needed to play down the stretch, how hard it was going to be.”
UP NEXT:
The Spurs are now 18-23 on the season and will return to the court on Monday night when they take on the Phoenix Suns (18-24) at 9 p.m.
