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Spurs 125, Wizards 118 (2OT)
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
WASHINGTON — Forward Tim Duncan had a season-high 31 and 11 rebounds and guard Patty Mills scored 23 as the San Antonio Spurs defeated the Washington Wizards for a 16th straight time, 125-118, in double-overtime on Wednesday night.
Mills scored 11 in the two extra sessions for the Spurs (36-13), who survived without guard Tony Parker the entire second half and minus Duncan for the final 4:13 after the big man fouled out.
The wild game featured both teams making frantic comebacks before Washington faltered in the final period, missing all 11 of its field-goal attempts.
Guard Marco Belinelli scored 14, and his layup with 2:02 remaining gave the Spurs the lead for good at 119-117. This came after San Antonio scored the final five points of regulation to force the first overtime and then blew a seven-point lead in that session.
Guard John Wall scored 29 points for the Wizards, including the game-tying layup to force the second overtime. Seven players for Washington (24-24) scored in double figures, including guard Bradley Beal with 19.
The loss came one game after the Wizards’ record crossed into winning territory for the first time since 2009.
Forward Danny Green had 22 points for the Spurs including a 3-pointer with 1:16 left in the second overtime for a 122-117 lead.
Washington, which last defeated San Antonio 110-95 on Nov. 12, 2005, has lost nine consecutive at home in the series. Forward Trevor Ariza had 15 points and 10 rebounds.
The Spurs trailed 99-94 with 90 seconds remaining in regulation when Mills made a 3-pointer. Duncan’s floater tied the game at 99-99 with 1:02 left.
All appeared lost for the Wizards in the first overtime as Mills sank his fourth from beyond the arc for a
111-104 lead with 2:01 remaining. Washington closed the period with 11-4 run as Wall scored the last eight including six inside the final 11 seconds.
Coming out of a timeout down 115-113 with 6.1 seconds left, Wall intercepted a Duncan pass across half court. He quickly dribbled the 65 feet back for the game-tying layup with 1.9 seconds remaining.
The Wizards had won two straight, double-digit victories over the Oklahoma City Thunder and Portland Trail Blazers.
Behind 14 first-quarter points from Wall and 13 San Antonio turnovers, Washington led by 17 points in the first half and 62-48 entering halftime.
The 37-year-old Duncan scored San Antonio’s first six points of a 9-0 run and 14 of San Antonio’s first 21 points in the third. Washington entered the fourth leading 83-82 before the crowd of 15,791.
NOTES: Wizards F Trevor Booker returned to the lineup after missing Monday’s game for personal reasons. … The Spurs remain without F Kawhi Leonard (fractured hand) and G Manu Ginobili (left hamstring tightness). … San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, a Russian history major at Air Force, talked pregame about the Winter Olympics in Sochi, including his anxiety when watching figure skating. “I can’t stand it when they fall. I feel awful for them. It’s like missing two free throws at the end of a basketball game,” he said. … The third game of San Antonio’s nine-game “rodeo road trip” comes Thursday at the Brooklyn Nets. Washington’s fourth straight home game comes Friday against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
