BOSTON — The Spurs rested up before playing the defending league champions, and it paid off.
“It’s hard for the oldest team in the NBA to feel fresh,” coach Gregg Popovich said Sunday after the Spurs scored 11 straight points in the final 45 seconds to turn a one-point deficit into a 105-99 victory over the Celtics. “It was a beautiful win for us, against the NBA champions and on the road makes it even sweeter.”
Roger Mason pulled up and leaned into a 3-pointer with 20.4 seconds left to give San Antonio the lead, then hit two free throws after Manu Ginobili hit four as the Spurs pulled away from the Celtics. Tim Duncan had 23 points and 13 rebounds and Matt Bonner scored 23 points — the second-most in his career — including 3-of-6 from 3-point range.
The Spurs won for the ninth time in 11 games.
Ginobili scored 19 points off the bench, playing more than 31 minutes after sitting out Tuesday’s game against the Nuggets with a bruised hip. Duncan, who had not missed a game since 2007, also sat out the game in Denver, as did Michael Finley and Tony Parker while the Spurs try to pace themselves over an eight-game, three-week road trip.
“If I would have played in Denver, I wouldn’t have been this fresh for sure,” Ginobili said. “It was very important for us to get rest a couple of days.”
Kevin Garnett had 26 points and 12 rebounds, Paul Pierce added 19 and eight and Rajon Rondo had 16 assists for Boston. It was the second loss in three games for the Celtics, who lost to the Lakers on Thursday in an NBA Finals rematch to snap a 12-game win streak.
Boston embarks on a six-game road trip, interrupted by the all-star break, before returning home at the end of the month. The trip begins Wednesday and Thursday with back-to-back games in New Orleans and Dallas.
“We’ve got a tough task in front of us, going on the road for the next couple of weeks, and we’ve got to make up some ground,” Pierce said. “We have our work cut out for us. This is a big road trip for us.”
