Spurs 98, Magic 96
ORLANDO, Fla. -- All-Star Kawhi Leonard scored 29 points and hit the game winning jumper with nine-tenths of a second remaining to lead the San Antonio Spurs to a 98-96 victory over the Orlando Magic on Wednesday.
The Spurs (45-8) won their sixth consecutive game and go into the All-Star break with the best record in franchise history.
Forward LaMarcus Aldridge recorded 21 points and seven rebounds. Reserve Patty Mills had 17 points and hit a trio of 3-pointers. Danny Green had 12 points, including eight in the final period.
The Magic were led by Evan Fournier's 28 points. He tied the game on a 3-pointer with 13 seconds remaining, setting up Leonard final heroics.
Magic center Nikola Vucevic had 20 points and 13 rebounds. Victor Oladipo added 14 points. Point guard Elfrid Payton recorded 13 points with seven rebounds and six assists. He missed an off-balance shot at the buzzer. Forward Aaron Gordon grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds with four points. Rookie Mario Hezonja scored 12.
Spurs center Tim Duncan, who returned after missing eight games with a sore knee, had five points, seven rebounds and five assists in 18 minutes. San Antonio was without starting point guard Tony Parker, who was resting a sore ankle.
Aldridge gave the Spurs their first lead of the fourth quarter, 94-93, with 1:10 remaining on a 15-foot jumper. Leonard hit two free throws for the 96-93 lead with 59 seconds remaining.
The Spurs trailed by 12 points going into the fourth. Green scored seven consecutive points when they pulled to within nine points early in the period. Mills and Leonard hit back-to-back 3-points to close to 89-86.
The Magic made a 15-3 run midway in the third period that included 3-point plays by both Fournier and Aaron Gordon, giving them a 72-63 lead. The Magic led 79-67 going into the final period after the Spurs made only seven of 26 shots in the third.
The Magic led 51-50 at intermission after closing with an 11-0 run that included two 3-pointers by Oladipo and one by Fournier.
The Spurs took a 50-40 lead -- their largest in the first half -- on back-to-back baskets by Leonard, who had 15 points and four rebounds in the first two periods. Aldridge had 11 points and Fournier 13 before halftime
The Magic led by as many as five points in the first quarter, but the Spurs hit 11 of their last 12 shots in the opening period for a 29-23 lead.
NOTES: Spurs C Tim Duncan returned after missing the previous eight games with a sore right knee. G Manu Ginobili missed his fourth consecutive game recovering from testicular surgery. ... Magic veteran PG C.J. Watson, who signed a three-year contract last summer, was activated after missing the previous 43 games with a left calf injury. Watson was expected to provide veteran leadership this season but has not been a factor since the second week. ... F Tobias Harris, Orlando's fourth leading scorer, missed his third consecutive game with a sore ankle. Backup C Jason Smith hurt his back on Monday against Atlanta and did not play Wednesday. ... The Magic have talked with the Clippers about a possible deal involving F Blake Griffin, according to the well-respected publication Basketball Insiders. ... Spurs F LaMarcus Aldridge, acquired this summer, came into Wednesday having led the Spurs in scoring in five of the previous seven games. ... The Spurs will have the best winning percentage in franchise history going into All-Star weekend. ... This was the second of eight consecutive road games that the Spurs will play because of an annual indoor rodeo at AT&T Center. ... Spurs PG Tony Parker missed the game to rest a sore ankle despite looking fine warming up.