It's back to business for the NBA -- the All-Star weekend is over and the second half of the season begins. The San Antonio Spurs who maintain the best record in the NBA finished the first half with three wins and they picked up where they left off.
"We know they are probably one of the best teams in the league," DeMarcus Cousins said. "They're playing team basketball, that's why they're as good as they are."
The Spurs 108-102 victory over the Sacramento Kings looked to easy. While the Kings trailed the entire game, Isaiah Thomas matched-up well against Tony Parker. Thomas finished with 22 points and did his best while driving through the lane with a spectacular crossover on Parker in the second quarter.
But that just wasn't enough to stop the veteran guard who led San Antonio with 30 points and 11 assists despite his 17 turnovers. The Spurs got their 15th win in their last 16 games. A strong start to begin the second half, while the Kings have now lost three straight games.
"I just wanted to be aggressive, that's what I've been trying to do all year-long," said Parker. "The first game after All-Star break is always tough. We're going to have some turnovers, some missed shots and stuff like that. Overall, it's a big win because if you win on the road it's sweet, I'll take it."
Sacramento went 4-for-22 on attempts made in the first quarter but only trailed by nine points despite poor shooting. They got better in the second half, Marcus Thorton made back-to-back three's and followed that with a fast-break layup bringing the Kings within 3 points (100-103) with 59 seconds left in the game.
But Tony drove through the lane against Cousins with 19 seconds left and Manu Ginobili made a pair of free throws to extend their lead to six points. Sacramento stayed close down the stretch but never recovered.
"We didn't make shots," Thomas said. "The whole first half we shot 30 percent, that was the biggest thing. When you don't make shots it makes everything else look bad."
Mayor Kevin Johnson was in attendance to tonight's game and is still fighting to prevent the team from moving to Seattle. He wants to develop a financial plan for next week. The NBA's owners meeting will be mid April and determine the outcome of this move.
"I see a whale sighting," said Mayor Johnson. "I can't tell you how close to shore, but I can see it."