Both Oklahoma City and the San Antonio Spurs will be in need of a win when they square off inside Chesapeake Energy Arena on Tuesday night.
The Thunder are coming off a 112-111 loss to the Boston Celtics on Sunday afternoon, another game in which they were competitive right up until the very end.
Dennis Schroder was one of four players in double-digits on Sunday afternoon, scoring 22 points on 8-of-21 shooting. His shooting percentage in the loss to the Celts was unusually low. Schroder is shooting a career-best 47.4% from the floor this season, although he has struggled against the Spurs this season.
In two games against San Antonio, Schroder is averaging just 15 points per game, more than four below his season-average, hitting just 40% of his shots from the field.
The Spurs, meanwhile, come into Tuesday in the midst of a five-game skid and are just 8-19 away from home. That record doesn’t bode well for a team that is going 25 days without a home game.
DeMar DeRozan, who was a late scratch for Monday’s game against the Nuggets, is doubtful Tuesday against the Thunder according to Spurs digital journalist JeffGSpursZone.
Spurs IR v OKC: DeRozan doubtful ( back spasms) #nba #ThunderUp #GoSpursGo
— JeffGSpursZone (@JeffGSpursZone) February 11, 2020
Oklahoma City will be without Darius Bazley, who injured his right knee late in the first quarter of Sunday’s loss. Bazley will be out for four-to-six weeks.
It won’t be long before yet another matchup between these two. They play twice in 12 days, their next game coming on Sunday, Feb. 23 in Oklahoma City.