Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
SAN ANTONIO — LaMarcus Aldridge had 24 points and 18 rebounds as the San Antonio Spurs fended off a late rally to beat short-handed Golden State 104-92 on Sunday night, extending the Warriors’ skid to three games.
Kevin Durant scored 26 points and Klay Thompson had 25 for Golden State, which is 2-5 since an eight-game winning streak.
DeMar DeRozan had 20 points and Rudy Gay added 19 to help San Antonio snap a three-game slide.
The Warriors were without injured starters Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, and their absence led to a cold start. Three nights after being held to a season-low output in a 107-86 loss at Houston, the two-time defending NBA champions nearly matched that dubious mark.
San Antonio jumped out to a 33-27 lead in the first quarter as Gay scored 12 points in the opening period.
The Spurs frustrated the Warriors offensively for much of the game. After quickly regaining an errant pass on their end of the court in the third quarter, Durant passed up a 3-pointer to fire a pass in the lane to Damian Jones only to have Gay stuff him at the rim.
San Antonio finished with five blocked shots.
Golden State’s lone lead came when Andre Iguodala made a pair of free throws to put the Warriors ahead 46-45 with 3:47 remaining in the second quarter. The lead lasted a minute before the Spurs closed the first half on an 11-2 run.
TIP-INS
Warriors: Curry missed his sixth straight game with a strained left groin. Golden State is 2-4 without him. . Green missed his second consecutive game with a strained right toe. . Warriors coach Steve Kerr got a technical foul 47 seconds into the second quarter after protesting a foul on Jonas Jerebko. . Durant was called for a technical after complaining about a non-call on his first field goal attempt of the second half.
Spurs: Aldridge has 202 games with at least 20 points and 10 rebounds since 2006. LeBron James has 203 such games during that same span. . Pau Gasol missed his sixth straight game with a sore left foot. . Davis Bertans sat out as he remains in the league’s concussion protocol.
UP NEXT
Warriors: Host Oklahoma City on Wednesday night.
Spurs: At New Orleans on Monday night.