Leonard scores 18, Spurs beat Jazz for Duncan’s 100th win
San Antonio Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard (2) blocks the shot of Utah Jazz guard Rodney Hood, center, as San Antonio Spurs’ Tim Duncan (21) and LaMarcus Aldridge (12) look on during the first quarter of an NBA basketball game Tuesday, April 5, 2016, in Salt Lake City. AP
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah—Kawhi Leonard made the go-ahead jumper with 4.9 seconds left and scored 18 points as the San Antonio Spurs beat the Utah Jazz 88-86 on Tuesday night, giving Tim Duncan his 1,000th regular-season victory.
Rodney Hood missed the potential winning 3-pointer at the buzzer as Utah fell a half-game behind Dallas for seventh place in the Western Conference. The Jazz remained in the No. 8 slot and a half-game ahead of the Houston Rockets.
LaMarcus Aldridge and Manu Ginobili each added 14 points in the Spurs’ franchise-record 65th victory. They visit Golden State on Thursday.
Duncan became the third player with 1,000 victories in the regular season, following Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Robert Parish. Duncan is the career leader in victories with one team.
Hood finished with 23 points, including 13 in the fourth quarter.
San Antonio’s bench was the difference-maker, outscoring the Jazz reserves 40-26.
The Spurs used a 19-2 stretch to open a 31-20 lead in the second quarter, but the Jazz didn’t roll over. Utah was held scoreless for nearly four minutes to start the second quarter, but responded with a 13-4 run to cut the lead to 35-33.
Spurs went into halftime with a 42-37 lead.
