SAN ANTONIO — The San Antonio Spurs picked up a road loss after falling to the Memphis Grizzlies, 121-113.
Tre Jones had 18 points and seven assists to lead the team while Josh Richardson added 16 points. Malakai Branham finished with 12 points and two rebounds while Jakob Poeltl recorded 13 points and seven rebounds in the loss.
San Antonio trailed by as many as 16 points in the first half but was able to pull within single digits and took the lead late in the second half.
Spurs' Keldon Johnson and Devin Vassell did not play due to injuries.
The Spurs are now 13-28 on the season and will next face the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night on the road.
Here's a sample of what the teams said after the game courtesy of the Spurs.
SPURS
Gregg Popovich
"It's like nobody wanted to be there then both teams pick it up in the second half," Popovich said. "They [Memphis] made more shots than we did for sure and we made too many mistakes. At least we found the grunt in the second half and we gave ourselves a chance."
Jones
"They [Memphis] started hitting shots It was a back-and-forth game," Jones said. "We clawed our way back in and took the lead. That unit that was out there to start the fourth was playing their butts off and got us the lead. They just hit shots down the stretch."
GRIZZLIES
Taylor Jenkins
“We just kind of found a little renewed energy in the fourth quarter. I think they got out to like a 7-1 start in the fourth. Their bench got them going there early. We just kind of stayed the course," Jenkins said. "There are pockets of the game where it was a little sluggish for sure, but our guys just kept chirping, all positivity about it, ‘Hey, let's get going. Let's get going.’ Third straight back-to-back. There are no excuses, but our guys found a way. So, it's a credit to them."
Tyus Jones
"It’s a game of runs. We showed our poise, not letting their run deter us from what we needed to get done to close the game. We were kind of dragging all night. Regardless of the score, we felt like we weren't playing our best and were kind of sloppy," Jones said. "They were playing extremely hard, playing well, making us work. We pulled out a good W, a hard-fought win.”
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