Ginobili busts out against Raptors defence
Guard scores 18 of 36 points from 3-point range in Spurs' 131-124 victory
Last Updated: Tuesday, November 10, 2009 | 1:17 AM ET
By Doug Harrison, CBC Sports
Manu Ginobili challenged himself and his teammates, saying the San Antonio Spurs needed a 48-minute effort to avoid a third straight loss.
The eighth-year guard made the comment knowing point guard Tony Parker would miss Monday night's visit by the Toronto Raptors with a sprained left ankle.
By game time, the Spurs were also minus top forward Tim Duncan (swollen left ankle) but didn't wilt as Ginobili came off the bench to score 36 points and eight assists in a 131-124 victory.
He posted 12 points over the final 12 minutes on four three-pointers as San Antonio overcame a two-point deficit entering the fourth quarter to improve its record to 3-0 at home.
"I think we're going to score, we just got to play better defence," Ginobili said. "We were talking before the season about trying to be the best team in the league defensively, and so far we're not even close."
Ginobili, who entered the contest averaging 13.8 points but shooting just 39.2 per cent this season, was 8-for-15 from the field and buried six of eight attempts from three-point range. He also drained 14 of 16 attempts from the free-throw line.
The six-foot-six Ginobili took advantage of a Raptors defence that had given up 108.2 points per game in six starts, getting to the basket with contact and scoring from all angles.
He highlighted a 10-1 run late in the fourth quarter with a three-pointer to extend the home side's lead to 120-110.
Missed opportunity
Hedo Turkoglu and Chris Bosh, who finished with 32 points and 10 rebounds, pulled the Raptors to within 125-120, but Bosh turned over the ball on a travel with 26.7 seconds left and the visitors down 127-120.
Toronto, which fell to 3-4, shot 59.2 per cent from the field but had trouble preventing the Spurs from getting to the glass. San Antonio (3-3) had 16 offensive rebounds to the Raptors' five and held a 32-12 edge in second-chance points.
Led by Ginobili, the Spurs bench also dominated, outscoring Toronto 67-40.
The Raptors led by as many as 10 in the second quarter and shot better than 63 per cent in the first half. But Toronto, which entered Monday as the third-highest scoring team in the NBA, couldn't match the Spurs shot for shot in the fourth quarter.
Starter Richard Jefferson had 24 points and George Hill added 22 for San Antonio.
Turkoglu scored 20 points and Andrea Bargnani added 17 for the Raptors, who gave up more than 125 points for the third time this season. Though off to their best offensive start in team history, the Raptors are also among the five worst defensive teams in the NBA.
"You can't give them any confidence," Bosh said. "We did the opposite, we gave them confidence. We gave them points right off the bat. They scored a lot of points."
In the first quarter, Raptors guard Jose Calderon eclipsed the 2,000-assist mark in his 298th NBA game. He is Toronto's all-time assist leader.
Duncan and Parker were injured in Friday's 96-84 setback to Portland and are listed as day to day. MRI tests on Duncan's ankle revealed no structural damage.
Toronto returns home from a 1-2 road trip to host the Chicago Bulls (4-2) on Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET.
With files from The Associated Press
