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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- The San Antonio Spurs grabbed the Western
Conference's best record over the weekend and tightened their grip
Monday night.
Tim Duncan scored 28 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to lead the
San Antonio Spurs to their seventh straight victory, a 99-81 win
over the Los Angeles Clippers.
|  | | Which No. 1 do you like? Hard to believe, but Michael Olowokandi was a top draft pick in 1998, one year after the Spurs took Tim Duncan first. |
San Antonio improved its record to 44-19, one-game ahead of idle
Utah with 19 regular-season games remaining.
"It was great the guys played to such a high standard coming
off the road trip," San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said. "They
were tired, but they concentrated and executed well. That was the
best part of the game."
San Antonio received double-figure scoring from four players and
extended its winning streak against the Clippers to 13 games.
David Robinson scored 14 points, Antonio Daniels 13 and Derek
Anderson 11 for the Spurs, who have won 21 of their last 25.
"Controlling your own (playoff) destiny is all you can really
ask for," Duncan said. "You want it to come down to what you do,
you don't want to have to worry about other teams helping you out.
That's what we've worked for."
Jeff McInnis scored 20 points and Corey Maggette added 15 for
Los Angeles. The Clippers were without leading scorer Lamar Odom,
who was serving the third game of a five-game suspension for
violating the league's anti-drug program.
"They just dominated the game," Los Angeles coach Alvin Gentry
said. "That team is very difficult for anyone to play catch-up
basketball against because they are so good defensively. They're
just a real quality basketball team."
San Antonio, which led by 17 points at halftime, opened the
third quarter with a 9-5 run and took a 64-43 lead on a slam by
Duncan with 6:54 remaining in period.
"Tim's (Duncan) confidence has returned," Popovich said.
"He's playing at full speed, but he's a great player and that's
what you get. David (Robinson) was great. He anchored our entire
defense. He made it possible to do what we did out there."
San Antonio led 79-59 after three quarters.
The Clippers could get no closer than 18 points in the fourth
period as San Antonio improved its home record to 25-6.
"We talked about not having a letdown before the game," said
Duncan, who recorded his 51st double-double of the season. "We
started out strong from the opening tip and kept it going for the
whole game."
San Antonio, which trailed only briefly early in the first
quarter, led 55-38 at halftime as Duncan had 21 points and seven
rebounds by the break.
Duncan scored seven points in a 13-0 run that helped the Spurs
increase a six-point lead to a 48-29 advantage.
San Antonio improved to 33-4 this season when holding an
opponent under 90 points.
"After the road trip we just had, the last thing we wanted was
a letdown at home," Daniels said. "We have been playing great and
we have been playing together. Our defense has been strong, and
that's what Pop (Popovich) preaches. Good defense leads to good
offense."
Game notes
San Antonio leads the all-time series against Los Angeles
80-24. The Clippers are 7-46 in games played in San Antonio. ...
Tim Duncan had his 51st double-double of the season and 204th of
his career. ... San Antonio guard Derek Anderson had 11 points
against the Clippers, the team he played for last season . . . Los
Angeles is now 8-27 on the road this season.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
LA Clippers Clubhouse
San Antonio Clubhouse
RECAPS
Charlotte 102
Chicago 94
Minnesota 94
Miami 77
San Antonio 99
LA Clippers 81
Denver 84
Golden State 79
AUDIO/VIDEO
 L.A.'s Jeff McInnis sets up a trailing Corey Maggette with a lob off the backboard.
avi: 615 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
The Spurs' Antonio Daniels feeds Tim Duncan on the breakaway for an easy dunk.
avi: 460 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
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