The San Antonio Spurs extended their winning streak to 11 games with a 106-97 victory over the Orlando Magic. 

The Spurs may have faced their toughest test of the young season and prevailed late for an NBA-best record of 12-1. Orlando Magic's four game winning streak was snapped.

Now it's time to look at the numbers that stood out in this Spurs' latest victory.

63.2 - San Antonio made 12-19 (63.2%) of their shots from behind the 3-point line, including all five of their attempts in the fourth quarter.

40 - The Orlando Magic controlled the boards and out rebounded the Spurs 40-31.

32 - The Spurs used a strong fourth quarter run to put the game away, they outscored the Magic 32-20 in the final period.

26 - Dwight Howard had a game-high 26 points and 18 rebounds to lead the Magic.

25 - The Spurs shared the ball better, they had 25 assists compared to the Magic's 19. Manu Ginobili led the Spurs with 25 points, nine assist and six rebounds.

24 - Tony Parker had a great all around game, he had 24 points, 10 assists and three rebounds for San Antonio.

15 - Tim Duncan had 15 points, four rebounds, three steals, two assists and two blocks in 28 minutes. Matt Bonner also had 15 points on 4-4 shooting from beyond the arc. Jameer Nelson had 15 points and five assists for the Magic. 

9 - The Spurs took care of the ball, they only committed nine turnovers for the game compared to the Magic's 16.

7 - Both the Spurs and the Magic had seven steals. Duncan and Howard had three steals a piece for their respective teams.

2 - Duncan and Howard had two blocks shots each.

0 - Jefferson, McDyess and Bonner had zero turnovers for the entire game. 

Rookie Watch: After playing 26 minutes against the Cavaliers, Tiago Splitter just played less than minute and was scoreless. Gary Neal was also scoreless in 11 minutes and had one rebound.

What's Next? The Spurs will visit the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Target Center in Minnesota on Wednesday.

Follow Robby Lim on Twitter @RobbyLim21

Alright, I’ll admit. I’m a fan. First, and foremost.

Tiago Splitter’s arrival has been so long in the waiting and so desperately needed, that patience can easily run its course. And as much as one tries to remove themselves enough to think of clear mind and sound rationale, fandom has a way of rearing its ugly head. I get it. Guil-ty-as-charged.

So with this new found outlook and a little better objectivity, the question becomes much clearer:

Has Coach Pop bust out the crock pot?

It’s understandable that the process and acclimation period would take a little longer for any first-time NBA player, even if said player is a 25-year-old Spanish League champion and MVP of both its Finals and regular season. It’s more than understandable that it might take a little longer getting up to speed if that player suffered an injury during his first training camp upon making the jump from overseas. There’s absolutely nothing surprising—at least, one shouldn’t be surprised—that Splitter’s insertion into the rotation and into the NBA way of life would take a little more time – whether there was an injury or not.

But there’s taking it slow and there’s taking it slow. It’s one thing to ease a player into the game, into the terminology, into all that it is to be an NBA basketball player. It’s quite another to in the middle of that process find yourself saying it’s inappropriate for a player of Splitter’s caliber to play – Tiago Splitter is, and represents more to this team, than a situational player. This is a player who’s talent allows for a team to dictate match-ups not be dictated to.

Prior to Splitter’s career-best line of 18 points, 5 rebounds, two assists, two blocks and two steals against the Cleveland Cavaliers, he had received to DNP-CDs, the first coming against Chicago and the second against Utah. They were two teams with formidable frontlines and one could easily find themselves believing represented a great opportunity for Splitter to play.

It was not to be, though, and it’s not as unforgivable or unconscionable as knee-jerk fandom can allow you to believe. Yes, Splitter could have played. And, yes, the San Antonio Spurs probably would have been—at a minimum—no worse for the wear. But Chicago went smaller with Deng playing the 4 (power-forward) and with a big road game against Utah—the first game of a back-to-back—fresh legs and the friendly confines of the AT&T Center would seem to serve the team and Splitter well.

As much as one can rationalize the logic and find some kind of method to the madness though, in the end, it’s still, well, madness: finding reason to not play one of your better players isn’t all that sound a premise. Unless…

If your working from the premise that you’ve got a talented, crucial piece to the puzzle being a first-year NBA player, someone making the cultural, professional and athletic jump from overseas, someone whom in the process of that jump got tripped up with an injury before being able to take flight, someone that also happens to be coming off a long summer of National Team play and has had a history of nagging injuries slowing him down at times in his career, more method seems to materialize than madness. Maybe—just maybe—the Coach may be onto something; a big picture can’t be painted with one single broad brush.

So while we see the flashes of pick-and-roll brilliance, the stellar position D and the potential of Splitter to lift this Spurs team back atop the league as one of its missing, crucial pieces, we may just have to bring the fervor to a simmer – getting the minutes to both learn the NBA game and gain the respect of its officials seems to be taking a backseat to making sure the 6-11 Brazilian is up to speed, healthy and rolling, by the time this regular season ends.

Do you smell what the Pop is cooking?

Yeah, yeah I did . . .

Follow Nick Kapsis @Project_Kap

Our own Jeff Garcia was a guest this past Saturday on Floatsam and Jetsam of Sports on Cleveland.com's Digital Sports Network.

Jeff talked about the San Antonio Spurs season, the difference in Richard Jefferson from year one to year two and one surprising team in the southwest division among other topics.

Thanks to Cleveland.com and Glenn Moore of The Dugout Sports Show for having him. If you missed the live broadcast, you can listen to the recording below. The recording starts midway through the first question.

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The San Antonio Spurs will look to match their longest winning streak in three years when they take on the surging Orlando Magic tonight at the AT&T Center. 

The Spurs (11-1) beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 116-92 last Saturday as Tiago Splitter scored 18 points and grabbed five boards in his most productive game as a Spur.

The Orlando Magic (9-3) are coming off a 90-86 win on the road against the Indiana Pacers for their fourth consecutive victory.

This could be a battle between offense and defense. The Spurs are currently 2nd in scoring in the NBA with 107.8 points per game, while the Magic are ranked 1st in points allowed with 90.3 points per game.

KEYS TO THE GAME

SPURS:

The San Antonio Spurs won their 10th in a row, improving their record to an NBA best 11-1 with a 116-92 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers (5-7).

Known for their slow starts, the Spurs (11-1) emphasized on winning early this season and are now enjoying their best start in franchise history.

It's now time to look at some numbers that stood out in this 11th win by the Spurs.

81.8 - The Spurs took care of their free throws making 18-22 (81.8%), while the Cavaliers only made 11-18 (61.1%) of their foul shots.

53.1 - The Spurs connected 43-81 (53.1%) of their shots from the floor and held the Cavaliers to just 47.5% field goal shooting.

50 - The Cavaliers made their outside shots as they went 5-10 (50%) from behind the arc. The Spurs weren't that bad either, making 12-25 (48%) of their three-point shot attempts.

23 - The Cavaliers played well in transition outscoring the Spurs 23-12 on fast break points.

21 - Mo Williams had a game-high with 21 points and had six assists, three rebounds and three steals.

19 - Tony Parker led the Spurs with 19 points, nine assists, five boards and a steal.

17 - Tim Duncan had 8 points, five assists and three rebounds in just 17 minutes of playing time.

12 - Matt Bonner had 12 points on 4-7 shooting from beyond the arc after going scoreless the previous night.

9 - DeJuan Blair had eight points and 9 boards in 25 minutes of action. Daniel Green scored six points and grabbed one rebound in 9 minutes of action.

0 - Richard Jefferson added 14 points and four rebounds for the Spurs and did not commit a single turnover in 25 minutes of playing time.

Rookie Watch: Tiago Splitter had his most productive performance as a Spur, he had 18 points, five rebounds, two assists, two blocks and two steals in 26 minutes of action. Gary Neal had 10 points, two assists, one rebound and a steal in 23 minutes.

What's Next? The Spurs will face the Orlando Magic at the AT&T Center in San Antonio on Monday.

Follow Robby Lim on Twitter @RobbyLim21

Fresh from a road victory and clinching the best start in team history, the  San Antonio Spurs (10-1) will try to extend their winning streak to 10 games when they host the Cleveland Cavaliers tonight at the AT&T Center.

The Spurs improved to 10-1 for the first time with a 94-82 victory over the Utah Jazz. The Cavaliers (5-6) are coming off a tough 108-101 loss against the New Orleans Hornets.

Tim Duncan is now the Spurs' franchise leading NBA scorer with 20,797 points over his illustrious career.

The Cavaliers have won seven of nine regular season games against the Spurs but could struggle in this one. This will be the fist time the two teams will meet after LeBron James leave Cleveland in favor of the Miami Heat.

KEYS TO THE GAME

SPURS:

The San Antonio Spurs (10-1) set a new franchise record after a nice road victory over the Utah Jazz (8-5)

The Jazz tried to pull another great comeback but couldn't get it together in the final quarter.

The Spurs ended their losing streak against the Jazz and will face the Cleveland Cavaliers for their second night of back-to-backs.

What numbers stood out in this Spurs' win? Let's find out!

46 - The Spurs dominated the boards, they out rebounded the Jazz 46-31.

25 - The Spurs didn't shoot the ball well from beyond the arc, making 5-20 (25%) of their three-pointers, the Jazz were equally atrocious from the three point line and made just 3-14 (21.4%) of their shots.

24 - Tony Parker had a game-high 24 points as he led the Spurs in scoring for the third straight time. He also had seven assists, four rebounds and four steals in 35 minutes of action.

19 - Tim Duncan had 19 points, 14 boards, four assists and three blocks and became the Spurs' scoring leader as he eclipsed David Robinson's scoring mark of 20,790 with 5:28 left in the third quarter.

16 - Even with Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson in the middle, the Spurs owned the Jazz on the offensive boards 16-5.  

14 - The Spurs got this one on the defense end, they held the Jazz to just 14 points in the first and fourth quarters. Duncan had a game-high 14 rebounds. 

11 - DeJuan Blair and Richard Jefferson had 11 points a piece and Manu Ginobili and Parker have each scored in double figures in the first 11 games this season.

10 - Andrei Kirilenko and Al Jefferson were held to just 10 points each. The Spurs had 10 steals for the game compared to the Jazz's five. 

0 - Matt Bonner's string of 3-pointers ended against the Jazz. He went 0-3 from behind the arc and 0-6 overall.

Rookie Watch: Gary Neal had two points, three rebounds, and two assists in 14 minutes of action while Tiago Splitter had his second straight DNP-CD (Did Not Play - Coach's Decision) of the season.

What's Next? The Spurs will hosts the Cleveland Cavaliers at the AT&T Center in San Antonio on Saturday for their second night of back-to-backs.

Follow Robby Lim on Twitter @RobbyLim21 

The San Antonio Spurs (9-1) can set a  new team record after tying their best 10 game start in franchise history with a 103-94 win over the Chicago Bulls last Wednesday. The Spurs also started 9-1 in 1980 and 1981 but lost their 11th game, it will be up to Tim Duncan and company to changed that trend and try to extend their winning streak to nine games.

The Utah Jazz (8-4) are coming off a 98-88 victory over the New Jersey Nets after their five game winning streak were halted by a 115-108 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Tim Duncan might reach another milestone, and has a good chance to surpass David Robinson as the Spurs' career scoring leader against the Jazz. Duncan is only 12 points shy of Robinson's all-time franchise scoring record of 20,790 points.

The Jazz will enter this ball game feeling pretty good about themselves. They won all four season games against the Spurs last year, although with some lineup changes from both teams, they outcome could be different this time around.

KEYS TO THE GAME

SPURS:

After a grueling 8-week boot camp and conditions that would make just about any grown man cry, the San Antonio Spurs have weeded out the weak, the meek and the feint of heart. 15 women survived, here are their stories:

(Actually none of that is true. Well, I suppose you could say they had some sort of boot camp – as in, they wore boots – and there are 15 women by my count, but I’m purely speculating on the conditions they were subject to – though I’m sure some of these women have made a grown man cry.

You’re not really reading this, are you?

I suggest you avert your eyes to the 15 women smiling with their eyes and bellybuttons.)

Great hair. That Lynda Fishers Hair Studio sponsorship was a smart move . . .

Follow Nick Kapsis @Project_Kap