Tony Parker's 37 points lead the Spurs past the Sixers

February 08, 2012|By John N. Mitchell, INQUIRER STAFF WRITER

Something about Wednesdays and point guards doesn't work out well for the 76ers. Two weeks after Deron Williams torched the Sixers - and three after Andre Miller did the same thing - Tony Parker sliced through the Sixers for 37 points and eight assists to lead the San Antonio Spurs to a 100-90 victory in front of 18,070 at the Wells Fargo Center.

Lou Williams led the Sixers (18-8) with 22 points. Jrue Holiday added 15 points and seven assists, and Andre Iguodala finished with 17 points and seven rebounds.

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Tim Duncan had 16 points and 11 rebounds and Gary Neal finished with 18 points for the Spurs (18-9).

During this stretch of games in which the Sixers have played 17 of 21 at home, point guards have given the Sixers their biggest problems. On back-to-back Wednesdays in January, Miller and Williams led Denver and New Jersey to victories over the Sixers.

With Parker leading the way, the Spurs never trailed in the fourth quarter and led by as many as 12 points in the period as they won for the sixth time in a row.

Williams cut the lead to 91-85, but Duncan's block on power forward Elton Brand was followed by a Parker jumper for a 93-85 Spurs lead. Shortly after, Williams scored a three-pointer that pulled the Sixers to within five, at 95-90. But Parker had the answer again, this time pulling up over Williams for a 14-foot jumper and a 97-90 lead that forced the Sixers to call time out with 1 minute, 26 seconds left in the game. They never threatened after that.

Earlier in the day, the Sixers got some good news on center Spencer Hawes, who did not play because he continued to be bothered by a sore Achilles tendon. An MRI exam of Hawes' back came back negative.

Hawes had appeared in the two previous games, both wins, after missing 10 games because of the injured tendon. Hawes' status for Friday's game against the Los Angeles Clippers was uncertain.

With Hawes out of the lineup, the Sixers went with rookie Nik Vucevic at center alongside Brand, out the last two games with a sprained right thumb. Brand finished with 11 points and 13 rebounds. Vucevic was held scoreless in 14 foul-plagued minutes.

The Spurs have gotten used to playing without one of their best players as well, having lost starting guard Manu Ginobili to a broken bone in his left hand. Before the game, Ginobili, out since suffering the injury Jan. 2, tried to bargain his way into the game with coach Gregg Popovich, but Popovich ruled it out. He said Ginobili would likely return later on the trip.

With no Ginobili, Parker picked up the scoring slack, scoring 16 of his points in the first half, which ended with the Spurs leading, 48-45.

Parker's three-point play with a little less than two minutes to play in the first half gave the Spurs an 11-point lead. The Sixers cut it to eight, 75-67, going into the fourth quarter.

 


Contact staff writer John N. Mitchell at jmitchell@philly.com. Follow him @deepsixer3 on Twitter.

 

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