National Basketball Association
San Antonio 108, Toronto 106
When: 7:00 PM ET, Tuesday, January 24, 2017
Where: Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Ontario
Officials: #43 Dan Crawford, #26 Pat Fraher, #46 Ben Taylor
Attendance: 19800

TORONTO -- San Antonio Spurs guard Patty Mills talked about just trying to hold things together until some of his more prominent teammates return from injury.

Mills, who scored 18 points coming off the bench, and his Spurs teammates are doing a good job of it.

Led by 21 points and seven rebounds from LaMarcus Aldridge, the Spurs won their fifth game in a row and their second in two nights, holding on to defeat the Toronto Raptors 108-106 on Tuesday.

"We're just trying to hold the fort down and waiting for guys to get healthy and get back," Mills said. "So it's satisfying in that sense, especially after a back-to-back, but that's one helluva Raptors team that plays well at home."

Kawhi Leonard, Tony Parker and Pau Gasol were among the missing for the Spurs. The Raptors were without DeMar DeRozan, their All-Star guard.

"We know what we've got to do," said Spurs center Dewayne Dedmon, who had seven points. "Injuries suck, but you've got to be ready to step up when you have to."

"You know they're missing Mr. DeRozan, so we both had players missing," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "I thought it was a really competitive game, anybody could have won the thing. ... Down the stretch, very honestly, it went our way. We didn't do anything special to deserve it other than playing hard just like they did so we're thrilled with the win."

The Spurs led by as many as 13 points in the first half, but the score was tied entering the fourth quarter and again with two minutes left.

Dejounte Murray's seven-foot floating jumper with 1:29 to play gave San Antonio a two-point lead.

Terrence Ross missed a 25-foot jumper for Toronto with 1:17 to play.

The Raptors could not take advantage of a Spurs turnover with 45 seconds left with Norman Powell missing on a layup.

After both teams missed their next shots, Aldridge made one of two free throws with 11.3 seconds left to give San Antonio a three-point lead.

Powell made a dunk with 6.2 seconds left and Aldridge converted one of two free throws with 5.1 seconds remaining. Powell missed a 33-foot running jumper to end Toronto's chances.

Raptors coach Dwane Casey believes the game got away from his team on the basics.

"Simple plays, layups, easy plays," Casey said. "I thought our guys competed their behinds off in the second half. I was really proud of the way they played.

"It comes back to the will thing. It's not the 3-point shots or the fancy plays, it's the fundamentals, boxout, free throws, layups, tonight in the second half."

Davis Bertans added 12 points for the Spurs (36-9) and David Lee and Murray each scored 11.

"One thing about being here is it's more about the system," Aldridge said. "They've been good over the years of plugging guys into the system."

Kyle Lowry led Toronto with 30 points, Ross had 21 points off the bench, Powell added 16 points, Patrick Patterson had 12 and Cory Joseph 10. Jonas Valanciunas chipped in with nine points and 13 rebounds for the Raptors (28-17) and Lucas Nogueira had six points and 10 rebounds.

"We played harder (in the second half)," Lowry said. “We went out there and competed and played a lot harder than we did in the first half.

"We made some more shots and we some more plays defensively. Norm (Powell) stepped up, Terrence (Ross) played well. Everyone is going to step up (to make up for the loss of DeRozan).”

Ross' two 3-pointers early in fourth quarter put Toronto ahead 85-81.

Aldridge tied it when he completed a three-point play when he converted the free throw after sinking a turnaround hook shot with 3:25 to go.

"Just guys stepping up and competing," Aldridge said. "We just tried to get the win and we played the right way."

NOTES: Toronto G DeMar DeRozan (sprained right ankle) did not play and will miss at least two games after being injured during the loss to the Phoenix Suns on Sunday. He will be re-evaluated Friday. He is averaging a team-leading 27.9 points per game. ... Raptors F Patrick Patterson (strained left knee) returned to the lineup. He had missed six games in a row and 10 of the past 12 since being injured Dec. 29. ... Spurs F Kawhi Leonard (sore left hand) missed his second straight game and G Tony Parker (sore left foot) missed his fourth game in a row. ... Spurs F Jonathon Simmons (sprained right wrist) also did not play. ... The Raptors visit the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday. The Spurs visit the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday.
Top Game Performances
 
San Antonio   Toronto
LaMarcus Aldridge 21 Scoring Kyle Lowry 30
Kyle Anderson 4 Assists Cory Joseph 2
LaMarcus Aldridge 7 Rebounds Jonas Valanciunas 13
LaMarcus Aldridge 9 Free Throws Made Kyle Lowry 11
Patty Mills 3 Steals Norman Powell 3
Danny Green 4 Blocks Lucas Nogueira 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
San Antonio 108 44.7 7-24 25-33 20 36 6 7 12
Toronto 106 45.2 6-25 24-28 10 45 8 9 13
Upcoming Games
  • Toronto will play their next game on the road against Memphis. The Raptors have a W/L % of .643 after a win and .588 after a loss.
  • San Antonio will play their next game on the road against New Orleans. The Spurs have a W/L % of .778 after a win and .889 after a loss.