New York: Alan Anderson scored 22 points to lead the Brooklyn Nets to a 103-89 NBA victory over the banged-up San Antonio Spurs on Thursday.
Deron Williams finished with 16 points and eight assists, Paul Pierce tallied 12 points, and Andray Blatche added 10 for the Nets, who had lost their last six encounters with the Spurs.
San Antonio, who already were without Manu Ginobili and Kawhi Leonard, also had to make do without French point guard Tony Parker, who left Wednesday’s double-overtime victory over the Washington Wizards with tightness in his lower back.
Veteran Spurs star Tim Duncan, who scored 31 points as the Spurs rallied for the win in Washington, was held out of the contest to rest, and reserve forward Boris Diaw missed the game with food poisoning.
Cory Joseph led San Antonio with 18 points, while Danny Green netted 17 points and Patty Mills registered 16 points off the bench.
Final period
The Spurs saw their three-game winning streak snapped, and the defeat marked their first setback on their nine-game Rodeo road-trip.
They still have six games remaining before returning home.
Anderson scored the final nine points of the third quarter for Brooklyn, helping the Nets take a 75-68 lead into the final period.
Anderson then opened the fourth-quarter scoring for Brooklyn after a pair of free throws from Joseph. Andrei Kirilenko threw down a dunk to stretch Brooklyn’s lead to 84-74.
The Spurs, who led 24-17 after the first quarter, seemed to tire down the stretch and Brooklyn pulled away.
