SAN ANTONIO —
Postgame
Game Story
First Quarter
Dejounte Murray opened the game with a strong drive and finish with his left hand. Toronto scored six in a row, then Devin Vassell hit a pull-up jumper. San Antonio made a couple of turnovers, and Toronto took a 10-4 lead.
More sloppy play ensued on both ends, but Jakob Poeltl put back a miss by Keldon Johnson. Doug McDermott's shooting slump continued, but he got to the rim in transition. Poeltl posted up, got to the rim and floated it in.
Fred VanVleet was shaking off rust after missing a few weeks, missing his first four attempts from deep. Lonnie Walker IV came in off the bench and drew foul shots with a strong drive. Toronto pushed their lead to 7 before a catch-and-shoot three by Keldon Johnson.
The Raptors kept scoring, but Keldon came back with a baby hook in the paint and a couple of free throws on a poster dunk attempt.
Dejounte Murray came back in, grabbed a loose ball, and timed the pass to Lonnie perfectly on the break. A few trips later, he drove his way to the line, then made another long lefty layup.
San Antonio went zone against a poor-shooting Raptors team with mixed results, and DJ danced his way into a mid-range j.
Former Spur Thad Young got in the game and hit a hook, then Lonnie drained a contested three. Toronto led 34-29 after one.
Second Quarter
Lonnie popped another three in, but missed his next two attempts. Josh Richardson pumped and pulled a three, but FVV got going on the other end, pushing the lead to 8.
McDermott hit free throws, then Dejounte tried a three in pick and roll and hit. DJ drove and found Doug in the corner, where he pumped and dribbled to the side before knocking down a triple. Devin Vassell stripped VanVleet and beat him on a jump ball, then Murray dribbled into an elbow jumper to tie.
The Raptors responded, but DJ hit from mid-range, then Lonnie, then Keldon hit free throws to put the Spurs back in front. Keldon caught at the arc, drove in and finished another. Tre Jones drove, jumped, and hit a tough leaner. Keldon kept attacking, and gave Siakam his third foul.
Dejounte went for a two-for-one and missed, but Poeltl put it back in. FVV hit a three, but DJ closed the half by spinning into the paint and dumping it to Keldon for a layup. San Antonio led 61-58 at halftime.
Third Quarter
Toronto scored the first two buckets, then Murray whipped it to Vassell in the corner to take the lead. DJ's next pick-and-roll pass went to Jakob Poeltl for an and-1, and he hit at the stripe. Jak poked the ball loose, ran the floor, and set a screen for a Dejounte layup that put the Spurs up 69-62.
FVV hit a three to quiet the run, then Scottie Barnes scored. VanVleet stole it from Vassell and got it to Barnes in transition, and Toronto tied it at 69. After a timeout, Barnes got to the line and made it a 9-0 run to put the Raptors in front.
Dejounte Murray got pushed in the back and went forehead-first into Khem Birch's face, knocking teeth fragments out oh Birch's mouth and sending DJ to the locker room with a serious gash on his forehead.
Keldon scored at the cup to tie twice in a row to answer Barnes, then Johnson passed to Tre Jones who dribbled into a deuce. Toronto hit a pair of threes, but Josh Richardson skied in for a huge block and Lonnie passed to Keldon for a huge slam.
The Raptors responded with a quick 6-0 run to go up 10, but Keldon came right back and swished another three.
Dejounte came back in the game and drove the paint for free throws.
San Antonio trailed 91-84 after three.
Fourth Quarter
McDermott drew an offensive foul, then got an open three but missed. Dejounte made an excellent block in the paint, but missed his next shot. Both teams were scoreless until DJ got a board and spun into the paint for a floater.
Toronto answered, Murray had a layup roll in and out, FVV hit free throws, and a Spurs turnover led to a Raptors dunk and 11-point lead. After a timeout, San Antonio failed to get a shot off and Toronto hit a three.
Thad Young hit a corner three, and Toronto made them work all possession before a tough three by Keldon. Jak hit a sky hook, but Scottie Barnes scored in the paint again.
Keldon got a huge block, and Murray hit a jumper to make it a dozen-point deficit with four minutes to play. Toronto pushed it to 16, then 17, and that was basically a wrap.
San Antonio fell 119-104, dropping to 25-41 on the season.
Pregame
The San Antonio Spurs (25-40) will host the Toronto Raptors (34-30) and will hopefully get head coach Gregg Popovich the all-time record for regular-season coaching wins.
San Antonio is 0-1 versus the Raptors this season.
In their previous game, the Spurs beat the Lakers, 117-110.
Dejounte Murray led the team in scoring with 26 points. Josh Richardson and Jakob Poeltl each had 18 points in the win. San Antonio was without Lonnie Walker IV and Devin Vassell.
"We're thrilled with the win. We have nine turnovers. I thought we were sloppy. I thought we were a little bit quick. Not very patient but we played good defense down the stretch and that's what fueled our lead I think because we weren't great offensively but we got a lot of good stops," Popovich said.
Here are five things to watch for in Wednesday night's game:
1. The Spurs have recorded more blocks than their opponent in three-straight games.
2. The Spurs have lost two straight to the Raptors.
3. The Spurs are 10-18 against East teams and are averaging 112.9 points per game in those contests.
4. The Raptors are on a three-game losing streak.
5. The Raptors are 15-1 when leading after the third period on the road.
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Twitter: @KENS5, @JeffGSpursKENS5