Field Level Media
Dec 28, 2019
DeMar DeRozan scored 29 points on 13-of-16 shooting, and LaMarcus Aldridge added 25 points and 12 rebounds as the San Antonio Spurs rolled to a 136-109 win over the visiting Detroit Pistons on Saturday at AT&T Center.
After a contentious and close first half after which ended with the Spurs up four, San Antonio broke open the game by outscoring the Pistons 42-25 in the third quarter and waltzed to the win, avenging a 34-point loss in Detroit in the first game between the two teams this season Dec. 1.
The Spurs were up by as many as 28 points midway through the fourth quarter after their bench took over.
The contest was the first of a three-game homestand for the Spurs and the first of six straight games on the road for Detroit.
Bryn Forbes added 18 points for San Antonio, with Rudy Gay hitting for 16 and Dejounte Murray scoring 13 in the win.
Derrick Rose paced Detroit with 24 points off the bench, with Andre Drummond scoring 21 points and grabbing 18 rebounds. Langston Galloway added 15 points and Blake Griffin scored 12 for the Pistons, who lost for the sixth time in seven games.
The Spurs led by as many as 10 points in the first half before settling for a 59-55 advantage at halftime. Aldridge paced San Antonio with 18 points while DeRozan added 16 as the Spurs outshot Detroit 53.3 percent to 41.7 percent in the half, including a 7-for-16 showing from 3-point range.
Drummond led the Pistons with 15 points and 12 rebounds in the half, with Rose adding 15 points off the bench. Griffin was 2 of 10 from the field and had just one rebound in the half.
The Spurs broke open the game in the third quarter with a 17-2 run that boosted their lead to 93-71. Most of the damage in that stretch was produced from beyond the arc, with Forbes hitting back-to-back 3s, then Derrick White adding a 3-pointer and then Gay pouring in two more.
San Antonio led 101-80 heading into the fourth quarter.
--Field Level Media