SAN ANTONIO —
Postgame
Game Story
First Quarter
San Antonio took a few possessions to get going offensively before Devin Vassell drove from the corner, absorbed contact mid-air and finished inside. Dejounte Murray bounced it to Jakob Poeltl for a rolling layup. Vassell drove from the other corner and made another bucket inside, and then Murray found Keldon Johnson for a screaming and-1 to make it a 10-0 run.
Keldon got back into the paint, missed one but tipped it in with his left. Jae'Sean Tate fouled Murray hard in the backcourt, leading to words between the two and a quick review. After that, Murray hit a three to put the Spurs up 10.
Vassell missed a jumper, but Poeltl popped it in off an offensive rebound. Houston hit a couple of threes, but Murray scored at the rim, poked the ball away, and then hit a mid-range jumper.
Houston got within five, then Dejounte hit another jumper and Keldon hit another layup. Josh Richardson came in and hit a jumper, then Keldon tipped in a miss and threw a touchdown pass to Tre Jones to push the lead to a dozen.
Houston hit their sixth and seventh triples of the first quarter, and Pop called time up six. Out of it, Murray lost the handle and gave the Rockets an easy transition dunk. Zach Collins hit a jumper, but Houston answered.
Dejounte grabbed a board, ran the floor, and dished it to Josh Richardson. Murray hit free throws to make it 39-31 after one.
Second Quarter
San Antonio drew up a play that got Josh Richardson a wide open corner three that he swished. The next play he drew a double in pick and roll and threw it down to Zach Collins, who spun in for a bucket.
Collins scored through a foul inside, then played solid defense switched onto a guard. Devin Vassell crammed a dunk, and Dejounte got an and-1 to put the Spurs up 16.
Houston responded with a 10-3 run, prompting a couple of timeouts from Coach Pop. The Rockets got three more points at the line before Poeltl hit a hook shot.
Keldon Johnson got hit on a layup attempt, fell and appeared to hit the back of his head on the floor. He stayed in the game, got a pass from Dejounte in transition and dunked it in.
Poeltl got another putback, and Murray hit another jumper and a circus layup to finish the first half with 22 points.
He blocked Houston's last shot, and San Antonio brought a 67-55 advantage into the locker room.
Third Quarter
Houston opened the second half on a quick 6-0 run to halve the leadm and Pop called timeout. Josh Primo drove in for a floater, then poked away a steal.
Murray bounced it to Poeltl for a make inside to push the lead back to 10. Houston hit four free throws in a row, then Murray passed to Collins for his tenth assist and another interior and-1.
San Antonio went cold, the Rockets hit a couple of threes, and suddenly it was a one-possession game.
Dejounte danced on rookie big man Alperen Sengun, stepped into a three and drilled it. Vassell got free throws to make it 79-71. Tre Jones lucked into a steal and easy layup.
Josh Richardson made a pass to Zach Collins in the dunker spot, and it looked like neither of them knew it was an alley-oop lob until Collins continued elevating before catching it at the apex and slamming it in.
Jones scored off a turnover, then J-Rich hit a three, then Keldon nailed one from the corner to put the lead back at 15. Sengun hit a three, but Collins answered with a putback.
Keldon made a lovely steal in transition, and Richardson hit another three to make it 15 again. Jalen Green beat the buzzer with a three, giving him 25 points and making it 96-84 Spurs heading to the fourth.
Fourth Quarter
Houston and San Antonio traded buckets to start the final period. Dejounte hit a tough layup through a foul, then stole it again. Josh Richardson passed to Josh Primo, who hit another floater.
Primo then drove and found Jakob Poeltl for an interior finish. Landale missed inside, but Poeltl put it back in. The next trip down, Landale drilled a corner three to put the Spurs up 12, but Houston answered with their 18th triple and Pop called time with a 107-98 lead.
The Rockets got two more points at the line, but Keldon pushed the lead back to 11 with his own free throws. Zach Collins got another offensive board, and found Keldon on a cut for another dunk.
Houston hit three baskets in a row to cut it to five, and Pop called timeout again with 4:17 to play.
J-Rich missed a three, and Jalen Green drove for free throws to make it 113-110.
The Rockets cranked up the defensive intensity, and after over 30 seconds of defending the same possession, Dejounte found Poeltl underneath for a buzzer-beating layup. It was San Antonio's first basket in about three minutes.
Dejounte got to the line and hit one of two to make it a six-point advantage. He hit more free throws, but then gave up an and-1 to make it a four-point game and missed a pull-up jumper.
Houston missed a three, J-Rich grabbed the board and hit a pair of free throws to make it a six-point game with 27 seconds left. Houston hit a three, then had to foul. Dejounte only hit the first, but that make became crucial as the Rockets hit a contested three to make it 121-120 with 10 seconds left.
Murray got fouled and made both, setting up a final possession to give the Rockets a chance for their 21st three of the game and the tie.
The shot rolled around every part of the rim, but rolled out. The Spurs escaped with a 123-120 win, their first four-game winning streak of the season.
Pregame
The San Antonio Spurs (30-44) will visit the Houston Rockets (20-55) Monday night as the Spurs wrap up their 4-game road trip.
The Spurs are 2-1 against the Rockets this season. Before the game, Gregg Popovich was asked about how valuable it could be for his young team to compete in big games late in the season with high stakes, and gave a complete answer.
"The more pressure players have, and the more they need to come through, the better for their futures. It tells us a lot about them, as individuals and as a group, so there's nothing but good that can come from it." Pop said.
"That's something that develops throughout the year, and you hope that you're in that kind of position, so I'm happy for them that they got themselves in this position, but now they have to continue to play the way they have been to get in. And if you do get in, you get to play the best team in the lead," Pop said before throwing his head back in a fit of laughter.
In their previous game, the Spurs defeated the Pelicans, 107-103
Keldon Johnson had 21 points to lead the team while Josh Richardson added 18 points in the win. San Antonio also connected on 22 free throws.
"I thought that was a big deal. I thought that really took them out of what they're usually doing because CJ (McCollum) moves so well without the ball. They look for him, they find him. He's just a cover, but in a zone, things get a little bit more stationary, and I thought it helped us a little bit," Gregg Popovich said.
Here are five things to watch for:
1. The Spurs have won six of the past nine games versus Houston.
2. The Spurs have won 3-straight road games.
3. The Spurs have 4-consecutive games with more free-throws made than their opponent.
4. The Rockets are 2-22 at home when trailing after the third period.
5. The Rockets have scored 115-plus points in their last two games.
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Twitter: @KENS5, @JeffGSpursKENS5