Ginobili, Aldridge lift Spurs over Hawks, 96-85: Recap, highlights and more

The San Antonio Spurs claimed its second consecutive win, defeating the Atlanta Hawks.

The San Antonio Spurs (11-6) are still a team searching for an identity without Tony Parker and Kawhi Leonard, but tonight’s victory over the Atlanta Hawks provided one possible blueprint for getting it done in spite of their absence. The Spurs took the lead early and fought hard for forty-eight minutes to earn the win, 96-85.

The first quarter was a back and forth battle; LaMarcus Aldridge struggled with his shot early, but remained aggressive on the defensive end and kept shooting as he tried to find his rhythm. Manu Ginobili led the way and hit a step-back jumper over Marco Belinelli at the buzzer to give the Spurs a two-point lead at the end of the period.

MANU GONNA MANU AT THE BUZZER pic.twitter.com/lgvmuAf09K

— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) November 21, 2017

The Spurs managed to break away in the second quarter, holding the Hawks to sixteen points and holding a solid 46-38 lead going into halftime, despite a strong showing from Atlanta Hawks forwards Taurean Prince and John Collins.

In the second half, the Hawks battled back and cut the deficit to one point, but Kyle Anderson made some key free throws to help the Spurs keep the lead. In the fourth quarter, with the help of some vintage Ginobili assists, Aldridge got some good looks and started to find his rhythm, extending the Spurs lead and building momentum for San Antonio. Aldridge finished the night with a double-double, 22 points and 11 rebounds, and Ginobili added 16. Danny Green hit a pair of three-pointers with approximately 3 minutes left to erase any doubt left at the AT&T Center, and the rest is history.

There was a time when the Atlanta Hawks were dubbed “Spurs East” for the way they’d rebuilt their program under the direction of former Spurs Vice President of Basketball Operations Danny Ferry, but these days, they’re hardly living up the moniker. The Hawks have stumbled out the gate to a now 3-14 record after losing Al Horford and Paul Milsap to free agency and trading away Jeff Teague over the last two seasons. The Hawks are rebuilding, plain and simple, and the Spurs were the better team tonight, but the Hawks have some things to be proud of. John Collins and Taurean Prince finished with 21 and 18 points, respectively, and Dennis Schroder added 14, although he shot only 6-14 from the floor.

Trivia fodder

• LaMarcus Aldridge isn’t the only one who’s been working on his range; former Spur Dewayne Dedmon, who didn’t shoot a single three-pointer with the team last season, made a corner three and has made eight triples on the season.
• Another former Spur and three-point gunner, Marco Belinelli, finished with eleven points, but shot only 1-6 from the three-point line.

Next: Top 25 players in Spurs history

The Silver and Black return to the court on Wednesday, Nov. 22 against the New Orleans Pelicans. It’s a road game that starts at 8:00 p.m. ET on FSSW.