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GAME BLOG: Spurs fall to Grizzlies, 96-86

The Spurs' winning streak stops at five.
Credit: Antonio Morano/ KENS 5

FOURTH QUARTER:

Final score: Grizzlies 96, Spurs 86

In this weird game, the Spurs' top scorer had 14 points. Marco Belinelli and Bryn Forbes tied for that honor. Patty Mills and LaMarcus Aldridge had 13, while DeMar DeRozan had just 9 on 4-of-15 shooting.

The Spurs didn't have an answer for Memphis center Marc Gasol, who has 26 points and 14 rebounds. He played well against his older brother, Pau, and the Spurs.

The Silver & Black didn't have much of an offensive flow, turning the ball over 13 times while tallying just 14 assists on 30 made field goals. As a team, San Antonio shot just 36 percent from the floor. 

The Spurs shot better from downtown, hitting at a 40.7 percent clip from long range. Credit the Grizzlies' shot blocking. The hosts had 8 rejections.

The Spurs fall to 24-18. They'll host the Thunder Thursday night in the AT&T Center. Tip-off is slated for 8:30 p.m. Central.

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The Spurs, who have been trailing for pretty much the whole game, got the lead down to 4 points, but then got stuck. Marco Belinelli ripped off five quick points, making it 76-72, but then the Grizzlies went on a 7-1 re-claim a 10-point lead.

THIRD QUARTER:

After three, the Grizzlies lead 72-64.

Hey, look! Some scoring! After both teams' offenses looked anemic in the first half, the Spurs won the third quarter, 33-30. Again, the Spurs showed off their depth.

SECOND QUARTER:

At halftime, the Spurs trail 42-31.

One of the Spurs' problems tonight has been the fact that LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar DeRozan haven't gotten going. At the half, Aldridge has 4 points on 2-of-7 shooting, while DeRozan has 6 points on 3-of-11 shooting. We'll see if this bunny gets LaMarcus rolling.

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With another game tomorrow, the Spurs looking like this offensively does not bode well. This slog of a game continues with Memphis using an 11-4 run to open the second frame. The Spurs scored just 4 points in the first six minutes of the period, and former Spur Kyle Anderson blocked DeMar DeRozan, keeping the Memphis lead at 11. The Grizzlies have 6 blocks already.

FIRST QUARTER:

After one, the Spurs trail 22-18.

The Spurs shot just 28 percent from the field in the first quarter and 25 percent from behind the arc. Not great. They also turned the ball over 4 times, but had 7 more rebounds than the Grizzlies. 

So let's just appreciate this play, where Patty Mills runs off a pair of screens to get enough space to fire a three. Neither of the screens are noteworthy, but the way Marco Belinelli is used as a decoy is just really nice.

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After falling behind by 6 points early, the Spurs erased that deficit with a 6-0 run to tie the game at 11. With Rudy Gay out and LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar DeRozan starting a combined 1-of-6 from the field, the scoring game from other guys.

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The Spurs kick off the second half of the 2018-19 NBA season in pretty good shape. After 41 games, the Silver & Black are 24-17. However, it wasn't always clear the Spurs were playoff contenders. 

San Antonio has won 13 of its last 16 since going 11-14 in its first 25 games.  

Wednesday night, the Spurs and Grizzlies face off for the third time this season. Each team has one win against the other so far this year.

The last matchup was just a few days ago, with San Antonio winning 108-88 on Saturday.

RELATED: SPURS GAMEDAY: White setting torrid pace for resurgent Silver & Black

Memphis is 18-22 and has dropped 6 straight games, the second-longest skid in the NBA.

Follow along with our KENS 5 Spurs team on Twitter below. Tip-off is slated for just after 7 p.m. Central.

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