Mavs Lose To Spurs

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SAN ANTONIO — Boris Diaw has been viewed differently than other San Antonio Spurs players this season.

While several teammates struggled because of injuries, Diaw often played badly without any pulls or sprains. Media and fans wondered whether Diaw was too satisfied after winning his first NBA championship and receiving a new contract.

Lately, though, Diaw has flourished. The reserve forward scored 19 points on Friday night, helping the Spurs defeat the Dallas Mavericks 94-76 to split the season series with two victories apiece.

The 6-foot-8 Diaw converted 8 of 11 shots from the field, scoring inside and from the perimeter. He made three 3-point baskets.

Diaw has averaged 15.3 points in his last seven games.

“It’s a long, long season,” Spurs guard Manu Ginobili said. “At this point, he’s feeling good, making shots. And when he makes shots, it makes everything much easier. It’s great to see him play with this aggressiveness.”

While Diaw set the tone, San Antonio (46-26) exhibited balance throughout the rest of its lineup. Guard Danny Green scored 14 points, center Tiago Splitter had 13, forward Kawhi Leonard and guard Tony Parker added 12 each and forward Tim Duncan grabbed 13 rebounds.

San Antonio established a 21-point lead in the second quarter, Dallas cut it to

four by midway through the third quarter, and then the Spurs pulled away again early in the fourth.

Dallas (45-28) committed 18 turnovers and lost guard Monta Ellis, who left midway through the third quarter with an injury to his right leg and did not return. Ellis finished with 10 points — 24 fewer than his average in the first three games against San Antonio this season.

“He was kicked in the right calf,” Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said. “It’s very sore, but we don’t know the extent of it.”

Ellis and Tyson Chandler (10 points, 14 rebounds) were the only Mavs who scored in double figures.

The Spurs made a 15-0 push bridging the first and second quarters to take their 21-point lead.

Dallas missed nine consecutive shots from the field while also committing four turnovers during that stretch. At the other end, Diaw thrived, scoring nine of the 15 points.

San Antonio produced 16 assists on its 22 baskets in the half, a statistic that coach Gregg Popovich relishes.

“That’s how we have to play,” Popovich said.

Despite sparkling play for most of the half, the Spurs allowed the Mavericks to chip away at the deficit with a 10-2 run that left Dallas trailing by 54-41 at the break.

San Antonio committed three turnovers during the final two minutes of the half, and Dallas turned two of them into baskets, a glimpse of what happened earlier in the week.

Turnovers largely cost the Spurs a 101-94 loss at Dallas on Tuesday. The Mavs turned 16 of them into 19 points.

Given a chance to regroup at halftime, the Mavs began the third quarter with a 13-4 run.

San Antonio missed 11 straight shots from the floor, including four on one possession, and Dallas found itself trailing by just four points.

The Spurs gathered themselves late in the quarter, taking a 69-61 lead on Green’s fourth 3-point basket of the game.

Diaw started the fourth quarter with his third trey and the Spurs could breathe again.

“We got it down to four and then we had (four) empty possessions in a row,” Carlisle said. “We weren’t able to recover after that.”

The Spurs’ defense prevented a catastrophe in that third quarter. Inept as they were on offense, they were only outscored 20-15. Dallas committed six turnovers in the period.

“We started the third not aggressive, not moving the ball well,” Ginobili said. “But the defensive stayed with it.”

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