NBA on Jan. 7: Spurs beat Pistons 119-107; Popovich ties Sloan
Updated 21:37, 11-Jan-2019
CGTN
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San Antonio was already down eight points when the Spurs took a timeout around the midway point of the first quarter. 
Then, after a turnover led to a Detroit dunk, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich called another timeout, just 14 seconds after the first. 
"Just mental errors, mental errors defensively, and gave them some easy buckets,” San Antonio guard Bryn Forbes said. “I don't know if it was to slow the run, but kind of get our head on right – kind of slow their pace there.” 
The Spurs responded well after those early problems, taking the lead by halftime and cruising to a 119-107 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Monday night. DeMar DeRozan scored 26 points, and Popovich moved another step higher on the NBA's career wins list. 
Popovich now has 1,221 victories. He's tied with Jerry Sloan for third place, trailing only Don Nelson and Lenny Wilkens. 
“I thought after the first quarter, we competed well, we were sharper, and we executed better,” Popovich said. “We had a poor first quarter, but I thought we pulled it together and focused pretty well after that.” 
The Spurs trailed 19-9 after the second of those two timeouts, but they appeared to get the message. A 23-2 run spanning parts of the first and second quarters put the Spurs up 45-33. 
It was relatively smooth sailing from there for San Antonio, which led 59-51 at halftime and 84-73 after three quarters.  
LaMarcus Aldridge #12 of the San Antonio Spurs looks to drive the ball as Blake Griffin #23 of the Detroit Pistons defends during the second quarter of the game at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan, January 7, 2019. /VCG Photo

LaMarcus Aldridge #12 of the San Antonio Spurs looks to drive the ball as Blake Griffin #23 of the Detroit Pistons defends during the second quarter of the game at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan, January 7, 2019. /VCG Photo

LaMarcus Aldridge scored 25 points for the Spurs. Blake Griffin scored 34 for Detroit, and Andre Drummond added 19 points and 14 rebounds. 
"Everyone talked about the regime ending in San Antonio, but they still have two Hall of Fame players in LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar DeRozan, and they are obviously a well-coached team,” Pistons coach Dwane Casey said. “I thought we got off to a great start, but their second unit came in and speeded things up. We didn't match it. We have to be able to pump the gas at the start of the second quarter.” 
San Antonio was without their forward Rudy Gay, out with a sprained left wrist, but the Spurs still won a season-high fifth straight game. Detroit has lost seven of nine. 
Popovich said Gay would likely miss the next two games as well.
Other games included:  
Houston Rockets 125-113 Denver Nuggets 
Boston Celtics 116-95 Brooklyn Nets 
Milwaukee Bucks 114-102 Utah Jazz 
Los Angeles Lakers 107-97 Dallas Mavericks 
New Orleans Pelicans 114-95 Memphis Grizzlies 
Portland Trail Blazers 111-101 New York 
Sacramento Kings 111-95 Orlando Magic 
Source(s): AP