PHILADELPHIA — The Spurs didn't have DeMar DeRozan with them in Philadelphia, and they clearly didn't have enough to win without him against a Sixers team that won wire to wire by a score of 134-99.
Philly moves to 17-3 in their home building, and as a team they shot 57% from the floor and 52% from deep, outrebounding San Antonio by 20 in a dominant performance as the Spurs couldn't get anything going.
Gregg Popovich was a man of few words after the loss, 15 to be exact, answering four questions with those efficiently-selected sets of syllables. His response to a question about what he saw in a third quarter that the Sixers won 46-21 is a salient analysis of the entire game.
"We played badly," he said. When asked if there were any positives to take from a game like this, he simply said, "No."
Dejounte Murray used some choice words to say that they got their butts kicked, and then went into a bit more detail, but only a bit.
"They punched us in the face, they didn't let up, I feel like we just couldn't get the ball to go in and then we couldn't get stops," he said, noting that they'd have an opportunity to get the bad taste out of their mouths tomorrow night against the Pistons.
"I think everybody here wants to win, you could see it in the locker room in their faces," he said. "We've gotta get to Detroit safe and be ready to play tomorrow."
A lone bright spot in the game for San Antonio was that since it was over halfway through the third quarter, all nine guys off the bench got serious playing time. Luka Samanic flashed some impressive playmaking ability, and Drew Eubanks made the most of his 24 minutes with a career-high 17 points.
He said that his offensive outburst came down to setting good screens, playing team basketball, and finishing good passes from Samanic and rookie Tre Jones. He said that defensive communication is the most important thing to figure out on that end.
After Pop was asked about the play of those guys at the end of the game, he did manage to find one positive takeaway after all, and used more words than he did to answer the other three questions combined.
"They hustled really well, gave everything they had," he said.
Recap
Fourth quarter
With the game functionally over, Gregg Popovich evaluated the Spurs who have spent most of the season riding the pine. Luka Samanic showed some of his promising playmaking ability, as did Tre Jones.
Drew Eubanks got extended run and scored a career-high 17 points.
San Antonio fell 134-99, getting beaten handily in every facet of the game.
Third quarter
San Antonio's shooting woes continued as Philadelphia remained red hot, building their lead out to 25 as everything went their way.
Seth Curry couldn't miss, Tobias Harris continued to score in a variety of ways, and San Antonio looked like they were missing their best player against one of the East's best teams in the league.
With the score way out of hand, Popovich put in guys like Tre Jones and Luka Samanic for development purposes.
The Sixers took a 106-73 lead into the fourth after winning the third 46-21.
Second quarter
The Sixers built their lead to 35-22 with a Dwight Howard putback. Drew Eubanks whipped a pass to Lonnie Walker IV underneath, where he got to the line for free throws.
Philly got another dunk, but Eubanks found Lonnie again, this time in transition for a difficult layup. He answered another 76ers make with a calm jumper off a screen from Eubanks.
Dejounte Murray got fouled after securing an offensive board, cutting San Antonio's deficit to single digits. Then he finished another fast pass from Eubanks for a layup, then drove in again for free throws to make it an 8-0 San Antonio run.
Walker took another Eubanks screen and pulled up for another elbow jumper to put him in double figures along with Murray.
Back in the game, Ben Simmons posted up and scored. Simmons then coughed it up inside on good defens by Eubanks, Lonnie found Derrick White in transition, who drove baseline and found Keldon Johnson in the corner, who drove middle and laid it in off the left side of the glass over Dwight Howard.
White drove in, hit the layup and subsequent free throw.
Down four, Devin Vassell ripped a steal from Ben Simmons and found White on the break. He went up for another layup, but found out what Spurs fans already knew, that Danny Green is a one-man transition defense.
Seth Curry extended their lead back to 7, but Walker answered with his first triple of the contest. Green caught in the corner, got run off the line, dribbled in, and hit a high-arcing baseline floater off the bounce.
Derrick White went for a three, thought better of it mid-air, passed it to Poeltl down low, got it right back, and hit an open trey to cut it to four again. Ben Simmons quickly doubled that lead, forcing a timeout.
The Sixers pushed their lead back to 10, but Derrick White stole free throws to end the half, making it 60-52 at the break.
First quarter
Derrick White opened the game with a three off a feed from Dejounte Murray.
Neither was the primary defender on Sixers star Ben Simmons, as that job fell to Trey Lyles, but both grabbed a steal from him in the first quarter.
Keldon Johnson continued to flash his growing playmaking ability, finding Jakob Poeltl underneath.
Former Spur Danny Green was in a zone to start, hitting his first three triples and even a driving layup. White got another three, and Johnson and Murray got a few finishes at the rim.
Tobias Harris dunked on a cut and then pulled up from mid-range, and the Spurs called time down 19-14.
Johnson scored on back-to-back cutting plays, and Lonnie Walker IV finished off a play at the rim in transition, but Philly built a 28-20 lead as the Spurs started 2-11 from deep.
Murray found Drew Eubanks underneath for a tough layup, but the Sixers got an easy floater and three to take a 33-22 lead.
San Antonio Spurs vs. Philadelphia 76ers
When, where: Sunday, 5:30 p.m., Philadelphia
All-time series record: Spurs lead 58-39
Last season: 76ers won 2-0
Season series: First meeting of the season
Last meeting: 76ers won 132-130, August 3, 2020
76ers' last game: Won vs. Wizards, 127-101
Spurs' last game: Won vs. Magic, 104-77
76ers' last 10 games/streak: 8-2, won 4
Spurs' last 10 games/streak: 5-5, won 1
76ers' injury/inactive report: Ben Simmons: ACTIVE (health and safety protocols); Joel Embiid: OUT (knee).
Spurs' injury/inactive report: DeMar DeRozan: OUT (personal); LaMarcus Aldridge: OUT (not with team).
RELATED: FINAL: San Antonio Spurs blow out Orlando Magic 104-77 after dominating final three quarters
Before the game, the Spurs announced that DeMar DeRozan would miss the contest due to personal reasons after a funeral for his father, Frank.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said that he's with his family, but he expects he'll be back before the end of this five-game road trip.
Sixers star Ben Simmons will play after a coronavirus quarantine, and Philly coach Doc Rivers said he won't face a minutes restriction. Joel Embiid, who appeared to hyperextend his knee in the previous game, will miss at least a few weeks.
When asked if Ben Simmons needs to shoot the ball to be an elite player, Popovich gave a thoughtful answer.
"It would enhance his game, obviously, that can't be argued with, but all of his skills... physical skills, basketball skills, the way he understands the game, as unselfish as he is, he's so elite already, who gives a damn if he can't shoot?" Popovich asked rhetorically.
Spurs blow out Magic after dominating final three quarters
The Spurs may have been a little nervous at the start of their first game in front of a home crowd in over a year, but after shaking off a poor first quarter, they dominated a shorthanded Orlando Magic team and won 104-77.
San Antonio won the second quarter 31-10 and the fourth 30-13, led by the starting backcourt of Derrick White and Dejounte Murray, and veterans Rudy Gay and Patty Mills off the bench. The Magic, coming off a game the previous night, ran out of gas late.
"At first it was a little different, cause we got accustomed to playing with nobody here, but to have that little bit of push during those lapses in play helped us a lot," said Gay, who led the team with 19 points and solid two-way play.
After the game, Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich praised Gay, White, and the medical staff that has helped them both recover from COVID-19.
"(Gay) didn't have his legs in the second half last game, but obviously tonight he did," Popovich said of the vet who scored 12 of his team-leading 19 points in the fourth to put the game away.