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Shorthanded Spurs suffer 132-129 overtime loss in Cleveland

The Silver and Black fall to 26-36 on the year. Their lack of depth at center showed as Cleveland's Andre Drummond put up 28 points and 17 boards.
Credit: AP
San Antonio Spurs' Keldon Johnson (3) grabs a rebound against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the first half of an NBA basketball game, Sunday, March 8, 2020, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

CLEVELAND — Overtime:

Strong play from Drummond and Love give Cleveland the edge in OT, and the Spurs drop this one 132-129.

The Spurs never gave up in this game, fouling until the end and hitting shots to keep it close. Derrick White drilled a triple to cut it to 131-129, but San Antonio just couldn't close on a night without several key players.

Fourth Quarter:

Rudy Gay again! Gay hits a mid-range jumper for his eighth point and third game-tying basket in the final 1:02. We're heading to overtime!

Sexton goes to the line with 3.2 to play and drills both to give Cleveland a 118-116 lead. One last play for the Silver and Black.

The Cavs go up with a 3 of their own, and then Rudy Gay ties it again with a three from the other corner. On the other end, Drummond gets a putback for a lead with 22 seconds left.

With the Spurs down 3, Rudy Gay drills a corner triple to tie. Locked at 111 with 1:02 remaining.

Five straight from DeRozan and the Spurs take a 108-106 lead. Andre Drummond picked up his fifth foul, making these last few minutes even more interesting.

Cleveland has opened the fourth quarter on a 17-9 run, taking the lead back from San Antonio.

Third Quarter:

The Spurs shot 60% in the third and outscored Cleveland 41-27 to turn a 10-point hole into a 4-point lead.

The Spurs opened the third quarter on a 13-2 run to wrestle the lead away from Cleveland momentarily. Halfway through the period it's 21-10 San Antonio, and the score is knotted at 71.

After a Drew Eubanks make, a Drew Eubanks steal, and a Drew Eubanks assist to Bryn Forbes for three, the Spurs trail by just 5 and force Cleveland to take a timeout.

Halftime:

The Spurs won the second quarter 32-25, cutting a 17-point deficit down to 10 at the break. Andre Drummond leads all scorers with 17 points, but the Spurs made a concerted effort to slow him down in the second. Trey Lyles is the only Spur in double figures with 11.

It's been a choppy, ugly game throughout with 46 total free throws attempted so far.

Derrick White is making an impact on defense. He got a steal and took a charge on back to back possessions. The Spurs have cut it to single digits with some physical play.

Keldon Johnson played an 8-minute stretch in the first half, and the Spurs outscored Cleveland by 6 in that stretch. Johnson didn't stuff the stat sheet, but did all the little things.

First Quarter:

Andre Drummond put up 11 points and 5 boards in the first quarter, making it abundantly clear that these shorthanded Spurs have no answer for him. DeMar DeRozan had 6 points and 5 boards, but other Spurs combined to shoot just 4-17 from the floor.

Drew Eubanks is the Spurs' emergency starting center, and he's having a really tough time guarding Kevin Love and Andre Drummond early. The Cavs are out to a 14-4 lead as Rudy Gay checks in for Eubanks.

Pregame:

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