![The Knicks are 4-11 to begin the season. [Image Source: Flickr | Alex Manchester]](https://staticr1.blastingcdn.com/media/photogallery/2019/11/23/660x290/b_502x220x82/the-knicks-are-4-11-to-begin-the-season-image-source-flickr-alex-manchester_2359464.jpg "The Knicks are 4-11 to begin the season. [Image Source: Flickr | Alex Manchester]")
The struggling San Antonio Spurs will look to end their lengthy losing streak in a Saturday night matchup at Madison Square Garden against the New York Knicks. This is the second time that the two teams will meet up with the first meeting in each team’s season opener.
It has been an extremely rough stretch for San Antonio as they are losers of eight straight. Last night, they were defeated by the Philadelphia 76ers 115-104. Despite shooting 50.6 percent rain from the field, San Antonio was unable to pick up the victory. DeMar DeRozan led the way for the team with 29 points, and Rudy Gay chipped in with 22 off the bench.
The Knicks were unable to hold on to a lead that ballooned up to 17 in the third quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday as they were defeated by the score of 109-104. New York was attempting to earn their first two-game winning streak of the season. Marcus Morris Sr. led the Knicks in all three major categories with 22 points, 13 rebounds, and six assists.
Records
San Antonio: 5-11, 1-7 on road, tied for 13th in Western Conference
New York: 4-11, 3-4 at home, tied for 13th in Eastern Conference
Team injuries
San Antonio: Questionable - Derrick White (foot)
New York: Out - Reggie Bullock (back), Elfrid Payton (hamstring)
Expected starters
San Antonio: PG - Dejounte Murray, SG - Bryn Forbes, SF - DeMar DeRozan, PF - LaMarcus Aldridge, C - Jakob Poetl
New York: PG - Frank Ntilikina, SG - RJ Barrett, SF - Marcus Morris Sr., PF - Julius Randle, C - Taj Gibson
Team stat leaders
San Antonio: Points - DeMar DeRozan 22.1, Rebounds - LaMarcus Aldridge 6.8, Assists - DeMar DeRozan 4.6, Steals - Dejounte Murray 1.6, Blocks - LaMarcus Aldridge 1.9
New York: Points - Marcus Morris Sr.
18.8, Rebounds - Julius Randle 9.2, Assists - Julius Randle 3.8, Steals - Frank Ntilikina 1.4, Blocks - Mitchell Robinson 2.0
League rankings
San Antonio: Points - 112.9 (12th out of 30), Points allowed - 116.1 (23rd)
New York: Points - 101.9 (29th), Points allowed - 108.9 (12th)
Tidbits
The Spurs were able to beat the Knicks back on October 23 by the score of 120-111.
New York was done in by the fourth quarter in which they were outscored 37-27.
As mentioned before, San Antonio has lost eight outings in a row. According to ESPN, that is the longest losing streak in the Gregg Popovich era. He has been their head coach since the 1996-97 season.
While both teams have had more than their fair share of struggles to begin the season, both teams have excelled at hitting the glass on the offensive end. The Knicks lead the NBA by a fairly large margin averaging 12.9 offensive rebounds per game while San Antonio ranks sixth averaging 11.2 per contest.
