“I just can’t explain how I feel right now. I feel like I’m in a dream,” said Mamu on his career-scoring night against the Knicks.
SAN ANTONIO — The San Antonio Spurs defeated the New York Knicks 120-105 at home, led by Sandro Mamukelashvili’s career-high scoring with 34 points.
Keldon Johnson scored six points, and Chris Paul had 12 points and nine assists. Devin Vassell added 10 points and four rebounds. Stephon Castle finished with 22, and Harrison Barnes recorded 11. Jeremy Sochan added 10 points and six rebounds.
The Spurs are 29-39 this season and will take on the Sixers on Friday night in San Antonio.
Here’s a sample of what the Spurs said after the game.
Mitch Johnson:
“We thought we wanted to match Jeremy (Sochan) as much we can with (Karl-Anthony) Towns. We thought Biz (Bismack Biyombo) was a good matchup for Mitchell Robinson, and it was kind of just simple as that. We’re a little bit of a ragtag group in terms of traditional lineups, and so there’s every now and then we’re just making adjustments so it flows a little bit better.”
Mamukelashvili:
“I did it for my family, everybody who supports me. I just can’t explain how I feel right now. I feel like I’m in a dream. My dad was here, he flew in yesterday, my brother. It’s just a special, special night. And thanks to the guys and coaching staff and video guys who come in and work out with me every day. I just want to get this off – they’re amazing.”
“I’m trying to get better, I’m trying to establish myself. I’m trying to show everybody that I belong. And you know, I’ll just keep taking strides towards that. And you know, I’m just so happy.”
“I didn’t know how many points he had or anything like that. I’m also paying attention to the clock, the game because at the end of the day, the focus is to win the game. But once it got to about two and a half three minutes, and I saw that we every time we got to stop – okay, game management so we can get him a shot but the first priority is always win the game.”