The Sports Xchange
Nov 20, 2017
SAN ANTONIO -- LaMarcus Aldridge scored 22 points and hauled in 11 rebounds to lead three teammates in double-figure scoring as the San Antonio Spurs defeated the Atlanta Hawks 96-85 on Monday at the AT&T Center.
The Spurs' led 84-79 with 3:34 to play before Danny Green poured in 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions to push the advantage to 11 points.
Consecutive baskets by Aldridge salted away the game for San Antonio (11-6), which continues its early-season success despite the absence of star forward Kawhi Leonard and point guard Tony Parker because of quad injuries.
Manu Ginobili added 16 points for San Antonio, with Green and Kyle Anderson contributing 14 and 13 points, respectively, in the win, which was the Spurs' second straight.
Rookie center John Collins led the Hawks (3-14) with 21 points off the bench while Taurean Prince hit for 18, Dennis Schroder scored 14 and Marco Belinelli and Dewayne Dedmon added 11 points each for Atlanta, which dropped its second straight game.
The Spurs led by as many as 14 points in the first half, which featured four ties and six lead changes before San Antonio settled for a 46-38 advantage at the break.
Ginobili paced San Antonio with eight points off the bench on 4-of-4 shooting while Prince led all scorers with 11 points, including the final four points of the half.
Atlanta cut the Spurs' lead to one point five separate times in the third quarter but could never move to the lead. Anderson's jumper with four seconds remaining staked San Antonio to a 70-65 lead heading into the final quarter.
NOTES: San Antonio is one of just two teams in the NBA (the Kings are the other) with only one player averaging 12-plus points per game: LaMarcus Aldridge, 22.3. Its next highest scorer is Rudy Gay at 11.8. ... Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer spent 19 seasons as an assistant coach with San Antonio. ... Hawks G Taurean Prince is a San Antonio native. ... Spurs C Pau Gasol was originally selected by Atlanta (third overall) in the 2001 NBA Draft before his rights were dealt on draft night to Memphis. ... Atlanta F Luke Babbitt left the game in the third quarter with lower back pain and did not return. ... Next up for San Antonio is a road game in New Orleans on Wednesday while the Hawks head home to play the Los Angeles Clippers, also on Wednesday.