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The San Antonio Spurs had their 11-game winning streak snapped by the Detroit Pistons. They had been steamrolling over their opposition, and they ended up losing 119-109 to the Detroit Pistons, who are 19-32 for the season. The Spurs have won more games than the Pistons have lost.
Putting together a 11-game streak is especially impressive when you are missing your key players for the majority of the streak. Take a look at the teams the Spurs have beaten over this 11-game stretch, which goes back to January 13:
January 13
San Antonio Spurs 106-88 Minnesota Timberwolves
Led by 20 points from Tony Parker and 15 from Gary Neal, the Spurs shot 56% from the floor for their 12th straight home win.
“We finally found a group that moved the basketball instead of standing. We actually changed sides of the court. That’s nice when you score,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said of that game. That was the one, which started this streak off.
January 16
San Antonio Spurs 103-92 Memphis Grizzlies
Tim Duncan led the way for this one with 19 points and Tony Parker had 19 points and 11 assists as the Spurs took this one without Manu Ginobili who was out with a left hamstring strain. Spurs shot 9-18 from downtown to take this one, including two from Stephen Jackson who stepped up with five assists and 8 points.
Coach Popovich wasn’t over the moon on this one, “It was one of our better games. [But] our defense isn’t that good. When something like that happens, it’s because the other team is having a tough night.”
January 18
San Antonio Spurs 95-88 Golden State Warriors
The Spurs have always been about taking what the defense gives them. Stephen Curry was out for this one, and Tony Parker capitalized with 25 points and 8 assists. Tim Duncan turned in a vintage performance with 24 points and 10 rebounds for a double double.
“[The Spurs] made some tough plays. They have a history of doing just that. I’m disappointed in the loss, but at the same time I really like the way my team got after it,” said Warriors coach Marc Jackson.
January 19
San Antonio Spurs 98-93 Atlanta Hawks
The Spurs were missing Manu Ginobili and Tim Duncan, but they had Tony Parker to carry the load. Parker had his 10th double double for the season with 23 points and 12 assists. Redhead Matt Bonner, chipped in with 17 points off the bench. Tiago Splitter and Kawhi Leonard added 14 each.
“He’s evolved over the years and he’s become an unbelievable finisher for us. To see the cracks he gets through, to see the plays that he makes, it’s hard to see it when you’re in the game. You know what he does but to sit there and watch it, it’s impressive,” Tim Duncan said of Tony Parker.
January 21
San Antonio Spurs 90-85 Philadelphia 76ers
“It’s pretty amazing at his age what he does night after night,” Gregg Popovich said of 36-year-old Tim Duncan turning in yet another double double.
Tim Duncan returned for this one with 24 points and 17 rebounds. Tony Parker gave them 20 points with 8 assists. Kawhi Leonard had 16 and Tiago Splitter got a double double with 10 points and 12 rebounds. The Spurs led by 17 in this one, and watched the lead fade before finally pulling away.
“Sometimes, basketball is funny. You just have to hang in there and hope the storm will stop. The storm lasted for a long time, but in the fourth quarter, we got it done,” Tony Parker said.
January 23
San Antonio Spurs 106-102 New Orleans Hornets
This time the Spurs were missing Gregg Popovich, Tim Duncan and Kawhi Leonard. Tiago Splitter stepped up once again with a career high performance of 25 points on 10 for 11 shooting. Tony Parker added 24 points with 13 assists.
“With Coach Pop not here and Timmy (Duncan) getting some rest, it was hard. I think everybody played hard tonight to take advantage of the minutes and win the game. My game was working. I was rolling to the basket, and Tony (Parker) found me every time,” Splitter said.
January 25
San Antonio Spurs 113-107 Dallas Mavericks
The Spurs withstood a 39 point fourth quarter from the Mavs to win this one. Once again they were missing Tim Duncan and Gregg Popovich. Tony Parker got hurt during this one, two cuts around his left eye. In spite of that he finished with 23 points and 10 assists. The Spurs were 17-1 at this point when Parker had 8 assists or more.
“When we play without [Duncan], we need everybody. Everybody has to step up. Tony came back and stepped up when we needed him. I was ready. We were all ready and it was great. It was a pretty fun game,” said DeJuan Blair, who had 22 points.
January 26
San Antonio Spurs 108-99 Phoenix Suns
Tony Parker led the way once again with 31 points as the Spurs were without Popovich and Duncan for the third straight game.
January 30
San Antonio Spurs 102-78
Gregg Popovich returned for this one as Tony Parker gave them 22 points in the absence of Tim Duncan, DeJuan Blair and Matt Bonner. This win gave Popovich the seal for becoming the West All-Stars coach. Daniel Green had 17 and Kawhi Leonard added 18.
February 2
San Antonio Spurs 96-86 Washington Wizards
Tony Parker led the way once again with 19 points and 12 assists. Tim Duncan went down with a right ankle sprain in this one.
“To have your best player going down holding his ankle and knee is frustrating. We don’t know how long he’ll be out, but we’ve got to get the job done out there; no let ups,” said Stephen Jackson who had 4 points.
February 6
San Antonio Spurs 104-94 Minnesota Timberwolves
Once again the Spurs were without Manu Ginobili and Tim Duncan. But Parker stepped up with 31 points and Danny Green added 28 as the Spurs took this one.
“I think [we] do have a good confidence level. The system doesn’t change when those guys [Duncan and Ginobli] are out. If Tony [Parker] was out, somebody else would play. They just run the same stuff. We don’t change anything. I think that they are pretty used to execution no matter who is on the court. They just execute it. Obviously, you have to make shots. Danny [Green] and Kawhi [Leonard] were pretty good at that tonight,”Gregg Popovich said.
8 February
San Antonio Spurs 109-119 Detroit Pistons
And this was the game, which ended the win streak of the Spurs. Although Tony Parker had 31 points and 8 assists, they allowed Monroe, Knight and Vinnanueva to score above 20 each as they lost by 10 points. The streak had to end sometime, and with it goes the monkey on their back to keep the streak up.
“We’ll probably lay an egg here sometime. Everybody does after a while. You never know what night that will be,” Gregg Popovich said.
The Spurs are now 39-12 for the season and OKC Thunder is hot on their heels with a 38-12 record.
