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Mason lifts Spurs past Clippers

Nov 18, 2008 - 7:06 AM By Jonathan Raber PA SportsTicker Contributing Writer

LOS ANGELES (Ticker) -- Roger Mason's 3-pointer with 8.4 seconds left to play lifted the San Antonio Spurs to an 86-83 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday.

Tim Duncan finished with 20 points, 15 rebounds and six blocks and Mason scored 21 points, including the game's biggest shot.

"I knew a lot of attention would probably be on Tim," Mason said. "So, I wanted to take the opportunity and make the most of it."

Chris Kaman connected on back-to-back layups with 1:44 left to pull the Clippers within three points. After a miss on the other end, Cuttino Mobley nailed a 3-pointer from the top of the key to tie things at 83-83 with just over a minute to play.

It was the last time Los Angeles scored in the game as Mason used a screen by Duncan to find an opening at the arc, hitting the decisive shot to send the Spurs to their third straight win.

"That's a shot that I work on quite a bit," Mason said. "It's just like practice."

The Clippers failed to get a man open on the final possession of the game and Baron Davis' desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer was well off the mark.

"I think we did a good job on a back-to-back with our group, just hanging in there and figuring out a way to win," said Spurs coach Gregg Popovich of his team, which secured a 90-88 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Sunday.

"That's how we've gotten most of our wins, just hanging in there."

Following a closely contested three quarters, the Spurs gained separation with a 9-2 burst to begin the fourth. Michael Finley and Duncan accounted for all the points in the run which resulted in a 77-66 lead with 9:37 left.

Davis' layup with 5:50 remaining would cut the Spurs' lead down to 81-75 midway through the quarter and start an 8-2 run that was capped by Mobley's 3-pointer.

Mobley finished with 18 points and Kaman had 17 and 13 rebounds for Los Angeles, which has dropped nine of 10 to start the season.

"I've been in this position with a losing team before, and it's not fun," Kaman said. "Right now, we're just trying to keep it together and we're doing a good job (of it).

"Everyone is on the same page still. We just need to keep playing hard and we are going to get a win."

The Clippers built their largest lead at 31-27 midway through the second quarter with consecutive layups by Mike Taylor and Mobley. The Spurs followed with a late push to grab a 43-38 halftime advantage.

Mobley single-handedly kept the Clippers in striking distance, scoring the team's first 11 points in the third quarter as the Spurs held on to a seven-point lead.