WASHINGTON—LaMarcus Aldridge scored 24 points as the San Antonio Spurs kept their undefeated record on the road intact by beating the Washington Wizards 112-100 on Saturday.
San Antonio also played Friday night but the back-to-back NBA games didn’t faze them as they improved to 10-0 on the road and won their eighth straight overall.
Asked for what has impressed him most during the winning streak, San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said, “The fact that a lot of the new guys have caught on so quickly.
“Kyle Anderson and Jon Simmons haven’t played much before. David Lee, Davis Bertans, and Dewayne Dedmon and Pau (Gasol) just all got here, so they’ve blended in very well pretty quickly. It was surprising.”
Tony Parker had 20 points and Kawhi Leonard scored 19 for the Spurs (14-3), who shot 53.3 percent from the field before a crowd of 17,066 at Verizon Center arena.
Simmons scored 15 points and Patty Mills 13 as San Antonio’s reserves outscored Washington’s 35-18.
The Spurs also outscored Washington 23-10 from the free throw line and led by 19 points in the second half.
Bradley Beal finished with 25 points and John Wall added 21 for the Wizards who have won a season-high two straight. Otto Porter tallied 14 points as Washington dropped to 5-10 on the season.
“It’s tough, but we knew that coming in,” Beal said of facing the Spurs. “That’s not an excuse for us not to compete and us not to go out and try to win a game, but you have to give credit where it’s due.”
The Wizards beat the Orlando Magic 94-91 on Friday for its first road victory of the season.
Parker scored 11 points and the Spurs shot 50 percent from the field for a 54-44 lead at the intermission.
After Washington closed to 69-62 midway through the third quarter, San Antonio seized command with a 16-7 surge during which Aldridge and Mills each sank a three-pointer and scored five points.
The Wizards looked undisciplined at times, losing Markieff Morris in the third quarter when the starting forward was ejected after arguing with the officials over a foul call. Morris had 12 points in 19 minutes.
Ian Mahinmi, who was acquired in the offseason, made his season debut for the Wizards after missing the first 14 games due to knee surgery. His impact was limited though as he finished with one point in 15 minutes of playing time.
– Westbrook posts triple-double –
In Oklahoma, Russell Westbrook posted his seventh triple-double of the season as he powered the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 106-88 win over the Detroit Pistons.
Westbrook posted 17 points, 15 assists and 13 rebounds to earn back-to-back triple-doubles on consecutive nights.
It was also his 44th career triple-double, which ties him with Cleveland’s LeBron James.
The Thunder had five players score in double figures. Anthony Morrow came off the Thunder bench and poured in a season-high 21 points. Steven Adams added 16 points and nine rebounds. Victor Oladipo scored 18 as Oklahoma City improved to 10-8.
Tobias Harris led the Pistons with 21 points on eight of 18 shooting. Ish Smith, who once played for the Thunder, posted 14 points and three assists.
In Charlotte, North Carolina, Kemba Walker scored 28 points, and Jeremy Lamb had 18 points and 17 rebounds, and the Charlotte Hornets snapped a four-game losing streak with a 107-102 win over the New York Knicks.
