on Friday night for their 12th straight win. "It

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - While a fast-paced offence has become more of a fixture in recent years, the San Antonio Spurs can still grind out games when needed. Marco Belinelli scored 13 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter, Kawhi Leonard had 15 points and seven rebounds and the NBA-leading Spurs turned in a vintage performance to beat the Sacramento Kings 99-79 on Friday night for their 12th straight win. "It was an ugly game, wasnt it?" Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said, proudly. Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker added 14 points apiece, and Tiago Splitter had 11 points and 11 rebounds for the Spurs (52-16), who remain 1 1/2 games ahead of Oklahoma City and Indiana for the leagues best record. The winning streak also is San Antonios longest since rolling off 12 in a row in November 2010. Sacramento outshot the Spurs 40 per cent to 38.7 per cent but was outrebounded 52 to 48. San Antonio forced 15 turnovers and committed only nine, pulling away in the fourth quarter behind its shut-down defence. "It was one of those games where we couldnt make a shot," Ginobili said. "The good thing is that they couldnt, either." Isaiah Thomas scored 18 points and DeMarcus Cousins had 15 points and 13 rebounds for the Kings, who were held to a season low in points against a franchise that has dominated them — like a lot of other teams — for a decade. The Spurs finished 3-0 against Sacramento this season. Theyve also won 30 of the past 33 meetings, including nine straight overall and 11 in a row in Californias capital city. "If you had told me going into tonights game that we hold the Spurs to 99 points, 38 per cent from the field, and 20 per cent from three-point, I wouldve said we were going to win the game," Kings coach Michael Malone said. "They just keep at it for 48 minutes, and thats why I think that they are the favourite to win the NBA championship." The Spurs shook off a slow start and started rolling late in the second quarter, speeding up the pace and looking for those "great, not good" shots the way Popovich always preaches. San Antonio led 47-37 at intermission despite shooting 1 for 13 from 3-point range. The Spurs finished 5 for 25 from beyond the arc, while the Kings were 4 for 14. Tim Duncan also missed his first seven shots for San Antonio before banking in a jumper in the third quarter. He finished with 10 points on 3-for-12 shooting and added nine rebounds and six assists. "Its a great reminder that we can win with defence," said Parker, who also had five rebounds and four assists. "It was not pretty. We were not shooting well. But sometimes you need to win those kind of games. We know in the playoffs, sometimes the ball doesnt go in." The Kings kept the Spurs within striking distance, and appeared to move even closer when Thomas made a 3-pointer as the third quarter ended. Instead, officials ruled Thomas shot came after the buzzer — and upheld the call after a video review. Belinelli swished a jumper at the start of his big fourth quarter to lift the Spurs ahead 73-57. And Duncan quieted Sacramento for good with a jumper that gave San Antonio an 86-69 lead with 5:35 to play. "I dont think we moved the ball enough," Cousins said. "We came down and got quick shots. That kind of hurt us. If we moved the ball a lot better we wouldve had a chance at this game." NOTES: Kings F Royce White, the 16th overall pick in the 2012 draft by Houston, made his NBA debut. He entered with 56.1 seconds remaining and never touched the ball. ... Former Kings centre Vlade Divac sat courtside next to team owner Vivek Ranadive and received a standing ovation when he was introduced on the video board during a timeout in the first quarter. ... San Antonio closes a three-game California trip at Golden State on Saturday night in a rematch of last seasons second-round playoff series won by the Spurs in six games. ... The Kings host Milwaukee on Sunday. ___ Antonio Gonzalez can be reached at: www.twitter.com/agonzalezAP Corey Crawford Jersey .J. -- Kevin Gilbride retired Thursday as offensive co-ordinator for the New York Giants. Chicago Blackhawks Jerseys . There is no argument that the line of Pacioretty, David Desharnais and Thomas Vanek was one of the hottest in the NHL leading into the post-season, and they did combine for three goals and seven points, but it was the depth of all four lines that helped propel Montreal. http://www.officialblackhawksfanstore.co...ckhawks-jersey/. Gaborik was acquired in a trade with Columbus on Wednesday and skated on the top line with centre Anze Kopitar and right-winger Justin Williams. "We created some things," said Gaborik, who logged 16:38 of ice time. Pierre Pilote Jersey . The 28-year-old lefty made his MLB debut in 2013, making 10 starts and going 2-5 with 4.05 ERA and 1.18 WHIP. Albers was named the Twins organizations minor league pitcher of the year for 2013. Brandon Saad Jersey . -- Lindsey Vonn squeezed in a little freeskiing on Thanksgiving morning, a step in the right direction for a return to racing after reinjuring her right knee in a recent training crash.Columbus Blue Jackets forward Derek MacKenzie was suspended three games for his hit on defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson of the Phoenix Coyotes on Thursday. Ekman-Larsson left the game with an upper-body injury after MacKenzie drove him into the boards midwayy through the first period, prompting Coyotes defenceman Keith Yandle to engage MacKenzie in a fight.dddddddddddd No penalty was called on the play and Coyotes head coach Dave Tippett said Ekman-Larsson was kept out of the game as a precaution. ' ' '