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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
BOSTON (AP) – The San Antonio Spurs couldn't shake the Boston
Celtics until they did what they do better than any other NBA team
-- hit the 3-point shot.
|  | | Tim Duncan found enough room against the swarming Celtics to score 15 points and grab 14 boards. |
The Spurs, entering the game with 40.8 percent accuracy on the long ball, sank seven 3s in the last 15 minutes and beat the Celtics 97-77 Wednesday night after trailing by five in the third quarter.
"The 3-point shooters we have now make us a different team,"
San Antonio's David Robinson said. "Now we can go on 15-to-20
point runs. It gives us something we didn't have last year."
Actually, the run was 40-18 starting with Terry Porter's
3-pointer that gave the Spurs the lead for good, 60-59, with 2:11
left in the third quarter.
Porter hit three 3-pointers in the last three minutes of the
third, and Derek Anderson made three more in the first 7:05 of the fourth.
Danny Ferry also sank a 3-pointer in the final quarter as San Antonio was 7-for-11 shooting in the second half after making just two of their nine long-range shots in the first half.
"They kept the pressure on us in the first half," said
Anderson, who had 26 points, eight rebounds and six assists.
"Terry hit some big shots and we matched their energy in the
second half."
Not even Paul Pierce's 37 points could save the Celtics, who
built a 30-14 lead in the second quarter. Indiana's win over
Orlando gave the Pacers a one-game lead over Boston in the battle
for the final playoff spot in the East.
"We feel like we're a playoff team," said Antoine Walker, who
had 13 points for Boston. "You're not going to come into our locker room after a loss and see nobody smiling, but guys take it very seriously."
San Antonio, 11-1 in its last 12 games, got 15 points and 14
rebounds from Tim Duncan, his NBA-high 56th double-double of the season.
When he and Robinson were covered inside, Porter and Anderson
took over outside as the Spurs made 21 shots in the second half and
missed just 11.
"We need to take a lesson from the San Antonio Spurs,"
Boston's Bryant Stith said. "Basketball is a simple game and they made it look very easy. They went into Duncan and when he was trapped he was able to find open guys on the perimeter."
Of Boston's 36 second-half points, Pierce had 18 and Walker 9. They combined for 50 of the team's 77 points.
"Boston did a great job coming out and being aggressive,"
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "It took us a while to adjust,
but we are a grind-it-out team and we got things together in the
second half."
The Celtics' biggest lead was 30-14 early in the second quarter, but that slipped to 41-40 at halftime as they scored just three baskets in the last 6½ minutes.
The Spurs went ahead when Anderson hit the first basket of the third quarter, giving them their first lead since 2-0.
Pierce and Walker scored 18 of Boston's 20 points in the third quarter but they were on the bench when the Spurs scored the last six points of the third quarter to lead 68-61. Duncan hit a free throw with 1:03 left, Porter sank a 3-pointer with 37 seconds remaining, and Anderson made a layup with 11 seconds to go.
Boston still had a chance when Pierce's last basket cut the lead
to 81-71 with 6:37 left. But Ferry's 3-pointer began a 10-0 run.
Game notes
San Antonio is 6-1 in its past seven games in Boston and won for the seventh straight time against the Celtics. ... Boston is the 20th team to score fewer than 80 points against San Antonio. ...Porter has started the last 28 games and San Antonio is 23-5 in that span. ... Pierce reached double figures for the 65th time in 67 games. ... San Antonio's 25-5 record since Jan. 23 is the NBA's best.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
San Antonio Clubhouse
Boston Clubhouse
RECAPS
San Antonio 97
Boston 77
Indiana 96
Orlando 95
Charlotte 111
Toronto 95
Miami 109
Chicago 81
Milwaukee 107
LA Lakers 100
Minnesota 109
Dallas 97
Washington 99
Golden State 94
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