San Antonio Spurs push past Atlanta Hawks in fourth quarter

Heroics from Derrick White and DeMar DeRozan pushed the San Antonio Spurs past the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday evening.

It wasn’t the prettiest victory, but the San Antonio Spurs held on to defeat the Atlanta Hawks 117-111 on Tuesday evening. In an effort that was highly uncharacteristic of a team coached by franchise architect Gregg Popovich, San Antonio committed 16 turnovers and 17 fouls in the contest.

Typically star shooting guard DeMar DeRozan does a decent job of limiting his fouls, but everyone has off nights. The 29-year-old fouled out with 1:20 remaining in the fourth quarter as his Spurs desperately grasped at a five-point lead. Guards Derrick White and Bryn Forbes stepped up in place of their leader by cashing in on consecutive jump shots to seal the game in San Antonio’s next two possessions.

DeRozan put together a superb stat line of 29 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and two steals in 36 minutes of play. He shot an efficient 7-for-11 from the field and a near perfect 15-for-16 from the charity stripe to make up for his five sloppy turnovers. Questionable officiating led to some warranted frustration for DeRozan, leading to his 11th technical foul of the season.

While DeRozan loaded the stat sheet, the shooting guard received plenty of help from his teammates along the way. After a stretch of poor showing on offense, White stepped up to the plate and delivered with 23 points on 10-of-12 shooting matched with four rebounds, three assists and two blocks.

A little late-game magic from @marcobelinelli.#GoSpursGo pic.twitter.com/4bIIZ6qfCI

— San Antonio Spurs (@spurs) April 3, 2019

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For the second time this season, White dominated his matchup against Rookie of the Year contender Trae Young, who finished with 15 points on 33 percent shooting from the field and 0-for-6 shooting from deep.

All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge tacked on a quiet 16-point, 11-rebound double-double with three blocked shots while sharpshooter extraordinaire Bryn Forbes knocked down 5 triples for 19 total points. Shaking off the rust of a cold streak heading into this matchup, veteran point guard Patty Mills delivered off the bench with 14 points including 4-of-8 from three with two assists.

In a night that saw snipers Marco Belinelli and Davis Bertans combine 2-of-10 from behind the arc, San Antonio managed to hit 46.7 percent of 30 three-point attempts against Atlanta. Neither of these teams is particularly adept at defending the perimeter, but the Spurs have an advantage in coaching and personnel that enabled them to snatch this win.

Every game matters to playoff seeding down the stretch of the season, so the Spurs must carry this momentum into Denver for a potential playoff previous on Wednesday night.