San Antonio Spurs Clinch Another Postseason Berth

The San Antonio Spurs have officially made the playoffs for the 20th season in a row. But the games that punched their ticket this weekend did not come easily.

Saturday evening, in a win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, the San Antonio Spurs clinched a berth in the 2017 NBA Playoffs. Although the fate was never in question, it has to be nice to see that little “X” next to their name yet again.

With the Detroit Red Wings of the NHL about to miss the playoffs for the first time since 1989, San Antonio’s streak of 20 consecutive playoff appearances becomes the  longest active streak in the four major North American professional sports leagues.

But the Spurs now have their sights on even bigger goals. The team is still in the hunt for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference and they have a real shot at the ultimate goal of winning another NBA title.

It was all but guaranteed the Spurs would make the playoffs this season. But their opponents this weekend really made them earn it.

Friday at New Orleans

Friday, the Spurs traveled to face the New Orleans Pelicans with their new-look roster featuring DeMarcus Cousins. Despite the big move, it was a game the Spurs were expected to win against a sub-500 team.

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But the game was tight until the end with neither team having more than a three-point advantage at any break.

San Antonio Spurs

The game went down to the final seconds in overtime. The outcome was decided thanks to some timely threes by Pau Gasol and Patty Mills.

LaMarcus Aldridge made just one of four free throws on the team’s two final possessions to keep New Orleans in it, but made up for it by defending Cousins on his air-balled three at the buzzer.

The Spurs won 101-98 with Kawhi Leonard leading the way with 31 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals.

Saturday vs. Minnesota

Saturday. the Spurs played another talented, yet struggling, team in the Minnesota Timberwolves. And again the lesser team wasn’t going down easy. Minnesota got out to a 12-point lead in the first and kept pace through the second.

It took a 21-13 fourth quarter for the Spurs to force overtime. Once in OT, the Spurs took over, outscoring the Timberwolves 14-7 and winning the game 97-90.

Part of the issue was definitely fatigue. The team didn’t get back to town until 2:00am Saturday morning following their win in New Orleans, which likely played a part in their slow start.

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The team overcame the misstep behind Leonard’s 34 points, 10 rebounds, six steals and five assists on 11-of-25 shooting.

The Spurs will have to be careful of the teams they are expected to beat. They will be fighting the rest of the way for the one seed and cannot slip up at this point of the year. On the plus side, only seven of their remaining 21 games are on the road.

This will be key to keeping some of their older legs (and heavily relied on legs) fresh for each game.

San Antonio is currently just two games back of first place in the Western Conference. But three of their four games this week are against playoff teams. Their next game is Monday night at home against the Houston Rockets.

The Spurs defeated the Rockets in their previous matchup and are 2-1 against them on the season. But this will be the first time they face Houston with its new addition. Lou Williams.

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With a whole day’s rest in between their victory over Minnesota and this game, look for San Antonio to come out sharp. Until then they’ll be celebrating their 20th consecutive playoff brrth. Maybe Kawhi will even crack a smile.