Aldridge, Spurs look to avenge earlier loss to Knicks
SAN ANTONIO -- The San Antonio Spurs will host the second in a series of games against teams they've lost to this season when the New York Knicks hit the Alamo City for a contest on Saturday at the AT&T Center.
The game is the second of a four-game homestand for San Antonio. In the first, the Spurs (55-16) finally found a way to beat Memphis after losing to the Grizzlies twice this season in Memphis, securing a 97-90 win with clutch play in the final minutes.
"Memphis is physical and they are really aggressive defensively," Spurs reserve guard Patty Mills said. "The game was a good preparation for us for the playoffs because that's how everyone plays."
With the victory, the Spurs crept back to within two games of idle Golden State for the best record in the NBA and the Western Conference.
The play of LaMarcus Aldridge was a key to the win on Thursday as he poured in 23 points and was a reliable scoring option for San Antonio to help offset the attention Memphis placed on slowing Kawhi Leonard, the Spurs' leading scorer.
Aldridge has been more aggressive with the ball in his five games back since he missed two contests with a minor heart arrhythmia. He has led the team in scoring in the Spurs' past two outings -- both of them wins.
"I'm just playing basketball and trying to be more dominant out there and taking my shots," Aldridge said. "I'm playing in the flow. I'm not being as passive as I was earlier in the year, and it's working out for me. I'm finding my rhythm out there, and my teammates are finding me."
The Knicks beat San Antonio 94-90 on Feb. 12 at Madison Square Garden. New York shot 64.3 percent from 3-point range (a Spurs' opponent season-best) in the win while holding San Antonio to 20.7 shooting from beyond the arc.
New York comes to south Texas off a 110-95 loss at Portland in which the Knicks never led.
Kristaps Porzingis scored 18 points for the Knicks, who played without Carmelo Anthony and Derrick Rose, both of whom were in action the night before in a loss at Utah. New York was playing its third game in four nights.
Porzingis missed his first five shots from the field and ended up 8-for-21 overall, including 0-for-5 from 3-point range.
"The attention was more on me tonight," Porzingis said. "I had a lot of good looks and some open 3s, and I was disappointed to miss them all. I missed a lot of good shots, and (making them) would have changed the whole game for us."
The Knicks (27-45) closed to within 10 points late in the fourth quarter before Portland used a 10-0 run to put the verdict on ice.
New York coach Jeff Hornacek was encouraged by the second-half effort.
"It was about just playing hard, getting after it," Hornacek said. "You're going to make mistakes as a young player, but if you play hard, sometimes those are hidden. The guys did a better job in the second half of getting the ball in to (teammates) when they had the advantage."