SAN ANTONIO — At the halfway point into their season, the San Antonio Spurs certainly have had their ups and downs.
But when it comes to playing on their home court, it’s been looking all good for the Spurs.
Tony Parker scored 17 points and handed out 11 assists to lead the Spurs to their 13th consecutive home win, a 103-82 decision over the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night at the AT&T Center.
Up 57-54 at halftime, the Spurs (30-11) extended the lead to 13 points after three quarters, then rode a late-fourth-quarter surge to pull away.
San Antonio went up by 21 points in the fourth when Stephen Jackson nailed a 3-pointer, making the score 96-75 with five minutes left.
Tim Duncan, who had a game-high 19 points, was one of five Spurs players in double figures. Boris Diaw had 14 points, Kawhi Leonard had 13 and Tiago Splitter finished with 10.
“Definitely,” said Parker when asked if he focused on distributing the ball. “The last two games I’ve had success against them, so they made sure I wasn’t in the paint. So I had to trust my teammates and my teammates knocked down shots. Ball movement was great tonight.”
The Spurs did it without Manu Ginobili, their leading scorer off the bench at 12.9 points per game. He is nursing a strained left hamstring.
The Spurs shot 58 percent from the field for the game.
“The guys (Spurs) did a great job of moving the ball and moving bodies,” said San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich. “They weren’t catching and holding it. It was real fluid offensively. I thought we performed very well. It was one of our better games.”
The Grizzlies, who have had their struggles in San Antonio, losing 15 of their past 16 games played in the Alamo city, looked to break that cycle out of the gate.
They led 25-19 after the first quarter, but they let the Spurs move the ball en route to 33 assists on 44 field goals for the game with only 13 turnovers.
Memphis only managed 28 points and one offensive rebound in the second half. They were 8-for-30 (28 percent) from the field in the final two periods.
“It’s frustrating. It seems like we’re not playing with any effort,” said Memphis forward Darrell Arthur. We played the first half strong and then only score 28 points in the second half. We just have to be better. We’re a defensive team and we’re not showing it.”
The Grizzlies (24-13) were led by Rudy Gay, who scored 17 points. Marc Gasol had 12, Zach Randolph 11, Tony Allen 11 and Mike Conley 10 as Memphis lost its season-high third game in a row and its straight 20-plus loss.
Leonard nailed a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to end the first half, giving San Antonio the lead. Duncan paced San Antonio in the first half with 13 points.
Gay led Memphis with 14 at halftime.
Gasol was limited with foul trouble, picking up his third foul 8:40 in the second quarter.
The Spurs scored 38 points in the second quarter, shooting 80 percent (16 of 20) and amassing 14 assists in the period.
“There is not much of a game to talk about after the first half 57 to 54 (score),” said Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins. “They made a 3 at the end (first half) and it was downhill. It’s just a disappointing loss. I’m at a loss for words right now.”
NOTES: Gay returned to the starting lineup after missing Monday’s loss to the Los Angeles Clippers for personal reasons. … Ginobili injured his leg in the first half of Sunday’s contest against the Minnesota Timberwolves. He is expected to miss 10 to 14 days. … The Grizzlies and Spurs have a flair for the dramatic. The teams have met twice this season with both games going into overtime and each team winning once. … Miami attorney Larry McGuinness filed a lawsuit against the Spurs on Tuesday alleging the Spurs violated the state’s deceptive and fair trade practices by “intentionally and surreptitiously” sending Duncan, Ginobili, Parker and Danny Green home, giving no notice to the NBA, the Miami Heat or their fans on the day of the game (Nov. 29.) Spurs coach Gregg Popovich’s response before Wednesday’s game: “I don’t have any comment on any of that kind of stuff.”