Just 24 hours removed from arguably their worst game of the season, the Celtics responded by going back-and-forth with one of the best teams the NBA has to offer. Unfortunately, the Spurs were able to pull away in the third quarter en route to a 104-93 win over the Celtics in San Antonio Wednesday night. The Celtics have now dropped five straight games.
The game was tied 48-48 at the half, but the Spurs outscored the Celtics 32-22 in the third quarter to pull away. Despite the loss, the Celtics got a strong effort for Jared Sullinger who recorded a double-double, 19 points and 17 rebounds. Jeff Green and Avery Bradley also had 19 points, while Jordan Crawford added 12.
San Antonio had six players reach double figures in points, including all five starters. Tony Parker led the way with 19 points, while Tiago Splitter had a double-double finishing with 11 points and 10 rebounds. The Spurs improved to 10-1 on the season.
The Celtics will return home to TD Garden Friday night (7:30, CSNNE) as they look to snap their five game losing streak against the Pacers.
What they'll be saying: It was a somewhat surprising performance for the Celtics considering how poorly they played Tuesday night, but it shows how quickly they can put games behind them and focus on the next one with coach Brad Stevens deserving a lot of credit for that. The major issue for the Celtics in this game was the lack of production from their bench as of their 93 points, just 15 came from bench players.
