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Ginobili Helps Short-Handed Spurs Down Raptors

POSTED: 11:28 pm MST November 9, 2009

(Sports Network) - Manu Ginobili finished with 36 points and connected on a series of three-pointers down the stretch to lead the San Antonio Spurs to a 131-124 victory over the Toronto Raptors.

With Tim Duncan and Tony Parker out with ankle injuries, Ginobili took center stage, making 8-of-15 shots, including 6-of-8 from beyond the arc. He also finished with eight assists and four blocks for the Spurs, who snapped a two- game slide.

Richard Jefferson added 24 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for San Antonio, while George Hill scored 22 in the victory.

"I needed to get hot and make shots and start to feel good again," Ginobili said. "It's a tough game when two of your best players aren't playing. We felt more responsibility as a team to take charge."

Chris Bosh had 32 points and 10 rebounds for Toronto, which has dropped two straight. Hedo Turkoglu and Andrea Bargnani scored 20 and 17 points, respectively, in the loss.

"We weren't hungry for it," Bosh said. "I don't know if we underestimated them, but we didn't come out and play hard like we needed to play. I think the opportunity was there for us."

In a tight fourth quarter, the Raptors took a 104-100 lead after two free throws from Amir Johnson with more than nine minutes to go.

But Ginobili countered with a three, then added another moments later to put the Spurs on top. Jefferson sank a jumper to make it a 108-104 Spurs lead.

The teams continued to trade points, and a Jefferson dunk with 5 1/2 minutes left ignited a seven-point burst by San Antonio. Antonio McDyess added a tip- in, and Ginobili closed the run with a three to put the Spurs ahead 117-109 with under four minutes remaining. In the same span, Toronto missed three shots.

Forced to play catch-up, the Raptors struggled for points. After Bosh made 1- of-2 from the foul line, Matt Bonner sank a three. Bosh countered with a tip- in with three minutes left, but Ginobili drained another from long distance. Hill followed with a layup for a 125-112 advantage, and the Spurs held on for the win over the final two minutes.

Jarrett Jack's three-pointer at the end of the first quarter gave Toronto a 32-31 edge, which the Raptors expanded in the second. Turkoglu's three-point play capped a 9-2 burst for a 47-37 lead nearly midway through the period.

But the Spurs scored eight consecutive points later in the stanza to make it a 49-49 contest, and Jefferson's three at the end of the half sent the game into halftime knotted at 63-63.

Marco Belinelli's trey at the end of the third put Toronto ahead 95-93.

Game Notes

Bonner ended with 18 points for the Spurs...Jose Calderon had 13 points and nine assists for Toronto, while Belinelli (12) and Johnson (10) also finished in double-figure scoring...Toronto made 59.2 percent of its shots, but made just three more field goals (45) than San Antonio, which made 48.3 percent from the field. The Spurs also had 33 free throws to the Raptors' 23.

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