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National Basketball Association
San Antonio 105, Minnesota 91
When: 8:00 PM ET, Tuesday, December 6, 2016
Where: Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Officials: #35 Steven Anderson, #77 Karl Lane, #49 Tom Washington
Attendance: 12585

MINNEAPOLIS -- Perhaps the San Antonio Spurs can petition the NBA to play the remainder of their games on the road this season.

After all, the Spurs have yet to lose while playing away from home.

San Antonio's latest road victory came Tuesday at Target Center as Kawhi Leonard and Co. handed the Minnesota Timberwolves a 105-91 loss. Leonard's 31-point night was a big reason why the Spurs (18-4) are a perfect 13-0 on the road.

Guard Patty Mills added 15 points, five assists and four rebounds in 27 minutes off the bench as the Spurs overcame a first-half deficit. Pau Gasol and Kyle Anderson each scored 11 in the win.

It's the second night in a row San Antonio trailed at halftime on the road before pulling out yet another road win. On Monday, it took the Spurs until the final minute to escape Milwaukee with a victory.

"It's hard to win an NBA game, especially on the road," Mills said. "Knowing that we're in another team's building and them trying to come out and wanting to beat us, there's that little bit of extra focus."

By comparison to its 13-0 road mark, San Antonio is just 5-4 at AT&T Center in San Antonio. The Golden State Warriors, who visit Minnesota on Sunday, are the only other team in the league with fewer than three road losses.

Leonard's 31 points -- his sixth 30-point effort of the season -- came on 11-of-15 shooting. He was also 7 of 8 at the free-throw line. Ten of Leonard's 31 points came in the third quarter, with another nine points in the fourth.

"When you have an elite player like that, they're difficult to stop," Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau said of Leonard. "You have to make them work for their points. I thought early on we were pretty good, but I didn't like our defense at all in the second half."

As San Antonio's defense started to clamp down on the Timberwolves, Leonard continued to heat up on the offensive end. The Spurs outscored Minnesota 29-18 in the third quarter and never looked back from there.

"I felt like we gave up a better effort when our second unit came in," Leonard said. "The second quarter, we picked it up. They had a 10-point lead, got it down to three at the half. We just kept building from that second quarter."

Minnesota (6-15) got 25 points from guard Zach LaVine, who has scored 20 or more points nine times this season. Timberwolves second-year big man Karl-Anthony Towns had an off night, shooting just 3 for 16 from the floor for 11 points. Towns did grab 14 boards but his 11 points were tied for his second-lowest total of the season.

The Timberwolves jumped out to an early first-quarter lead, leading 10-1 in the opening stages of the game. But like they have done numerous times this season, the Timberwolves squandered their early advantage. That lead shrank to just three points after the first quarter and remained that way at halftime.

"They're so good with their system," LaVine said of the Spurs. "Everybody plays their role well and they don't make many mistakes. They're a veteran team and they know what they're doing."

Kris Dunn was a bright spot for Minnesota in the loss. The rookie point guard finished the game with 15 points in 17 minutes. His playing time has fluctuated so far in his first season as he and Tyus Jones have split time as Ricky Rubio's backup.

NOTES: Spurs G Tony Parker did not play Tuesday night due to a left knee contusion. Parker was injured in the second half of Monday's game against the Milwaukee Bucks. He had been held out of San Antonio's two games prior to Tuesday. Parker is averaging a career-low 25.7 minutes per game this season. ... San Antonio rookie Nico Laprovittola started at point guard in place of the injured Tony Parker. It was his third career NBA start. ... Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau joined Spurs coach Gregg Popovich several times last season to share ideas while Thibodeau was between head coaching jobs. Both coaches reminisced Tuesday about what they learned from each other last year. "You can't help but learn when you're there. He was great to me," Thibodeau said. Added Popovich: "We're just coaches, we can't think of everything on our own. We have to steal from people and get some ideas from someone else."
Top Game Performances
 
San Antonio   Minnesota
Kawhi Leonard 31 Scoring Zach LaVine 25
Patty Mills 5 Assists Ricky Rubio 7
Dewayne Dedmon 8 Rebounds Karl-Anthony Towns 14
Kawhi Leonard 7 Free Throws Made Karl-Anthony Towns 4
LaMarcus Aldridge 3 Steals Cole Aldrich 1
Jonathon Simmons 2 Blocks Ricky Rubio 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
San Antonio 105 52.7 11-24 16-19 21 35 3 8 11
Minnesota 91 43.9 7-20 12-18 19 41 2 4 15
Upcoming Games
  • Minnesota will play their next game on the road against Toronto. The Timberwolves have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .429 after a loss.
  • San Antonio will play their next game on the road against Chicago. The Spurs have a W/L % of .833 after a win and .750 after a loss.