Rockets at Spurs
THE STORY: The San Antonio Spurs have been hot at home and cold on the road this season. The Spurs will try to stay unbeaten at home Wednesday when they open a three-game homestand against the Houston Rockets. San Antonio is 6-0 at home with a winning margin of 14.1 points but fell to 0-4 on the road by losing to the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday. The 106-103 loss to the Bucks occurred despite San Antonio shooting 60 percent from the field. But the defense was ragged for the third straight game and that irked coach Gregg Popovich. “It’s the worst defensive team we’ve had,” said Popovich, who became San Antonio’s coach in 1996. “We have a long way to go.” Houston is one of the teams that have taken advantage of the Spurs’ road woes, routing San Antonio 105-85 on Dec. 29. Playing in San Antonio might be a different matter. Houston is just 1-5 on the road but the win came Tuesday as the Rockets defeated the Charlotte Bobcats 82-70. The victory snapped a four-game losing skid.
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, Fox Sports (Houston), Fox Sports Southwest (San Antonio)
ABOUT THE ROCKETS (3-6): Second-round pick Chandler Parsons has started the last two contests and had a season-high 20 points in the victory over the Bobcats. Coach Kevin McHale opted to promote Parsons to improve his team’s defense and was impressed with the spark the former Florida star has provided. Parsons found himself matched up against Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant in his first start, a sign of respect from McHale.
ABOUT THE SPURS (6-4): First-round draft pick Kawhi Leonard scored a season-high 19 points on 9-of-12 shooting in the loss to the Bucks and has put together solid back-to-back games. Leonard had 13 points and 10 rebounds against Oklahoma City on Sunday after failing to reach double digits in any of his first eight NBA games. Leonard is an athletic forward from San Diego State who also saw playing time at shooting guard against the Bucks with star Manu Ginobili sidelined.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Houston has beaten San Antonio two straight times after losing the previous four.
2. Rockets guard Kevin Martin has scored 24 or more points in six of his last games against the Spurs.
3. San Antonio guard T.J. Ford strained his left hamstring against Milwaukee and isn’t expected to play against Houston.