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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
TORONTO (AP) – Vince Carter wasn't healthy, which made beating
Toronto a relatively easy task for San Antonio.
|  | | Vince Carter, hobbled by a sore calf, had one of his worst games of the season. |
Tim Duncan had 20 points, 13 rebounds and five blocked shots
Sunday to lead the Spurs to their fourth straight win, 92-74 over
the Raptors.
Carter has a sore right calf and the Spurs knew it.
"We made a point to go at him early and keep a hand in his
face," said Duncan, who helped the Spurs build a 16-point
first-quarter lead.
Carter had one of his worst games of the season, shooting
3-for-12 and scoring six points.
"My leg was hurting more than anything, but that's not an
excuse," said Carter, who was walking with a slight limp after the
game. "It was just a struggle throughout the whole game."
The Spurs, who have won 12 of 13, outrebounded the Raptors 47-39
and outscored them 48-30 from the lane.
David Robinson had 14 points and 10 rebounds, Derek Anderson 16
points and Samaki Walker 10 points.
"Toronto had one of those that we all have two or three times a
year," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "Nothing could go right
and it was just a bad combination for them."
Morris Peterson had a team-high 14 points for the Raptors, who
have lost two in a row. Mark Jackson had nine assists to pull him
within eight of Isiah Thomas for fourth on the NBA's career list.
Antonio Davis had 11 points and eight rebounds.
"Their big guys are playing well and when you put yourself in a
hole like that, it is hard to fight back," Peterson said.
The 6-foot-9 Davis had trouble matching up with the 7-foot
Duncan. The Spurs' center blocked Davis three times and scored nine
points in the first quarter as San Antonio took a 16-point lead.
It got worse for the Raptors in the second quarter, when they
made only five baskets. Carter had only four points at the half.
"Tim Duncan was great. He blocked all the shots inside early,
and that really took a lot of steam out of them," Robinson said.
"Vince got the one dunk and they had a couple alley-oops, but
other than that they really didn't get much going to the rim."
Duncan had a dominant opening half, dunking over Davis and Keon
Clark late in the second quarter and then 30 seconds later scoring
on a tipback with 2:27 left for a 45-25 lead.
"We weren't in the game mentally or physically," Toronto coach
Lenny Wilkens said. "We did not execute and our game wasn't
there."
Porter closed the half with a long jumper to make it 51-29,
tying the Raptors' lowest one-half total.
"There is no exuse," Charles Oakley said. "We allowed too
many easy baskets and we have some weaknesses on defense."
Toronto had seven turnovers in the third quarter, and the Spurs
pulled away. Anderson's two free throws made it a 80-54 lead with
7:08 remaining.
"They basically got whatever they wanted and that's not how you
win," Jackson said.
Game notes
Corliss Williamson, who has lost his starting job, wants to
be traded. If he's not? "The first thing I'll probably do is cry,
but I'll be fine. I'll be a professional," he said. ... The teams
split the season series 1-1. ... Carter was 0-for-4 with no points
in the second quarter. ... Toronto's Tracy Murray was a first-round
pick of the Spurs in 1992 but was traded to Portland before playing
a game. ... Duncan has been the Spurs' scoring leader in the last
17 games. ... Avery Johnson's long shot at the first-quarter buzzer
was way off the mark, bouncing off the 24-second clock. ... San
Antonio's Samaki Walker had blood dripping from above his left eye
after getting hit by Oakley under the basket. Walker needed
stitches.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
San Antonio Clubhouse
Toronto Clubhouse
RECAPS
San Antonio 92
Toronto 74
Philadelphia 104
Phoenix 98
New Jersey 102
LA Clippers 96
Utah 94
Sacramento 90
Vancouver 110
Minnesota 102
Indiana 110
LA Lakers 109
Orlando 96
New York 88
Washington 101
Denver 98
Atlanta 98
Golden State 91
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