SAN ANTONIO: The San Antonio Spurs, not quite ready to be written off as too old and too slow to claim an NBA crown, routed the Los Angeles Clippers 115-90 on Wed­nes­day.

Manu Ginobili scored 24 points, leading six Spurs players who scored in double figures.

DeJuan Blair added 20 and Richard Jefferson chipped in 19. Tony Parker scored 14 points with nine assists, Tim Duncan scored 10 with eight rebounds and James Anderson added 12 off the bench as the Spurs shot 56.3% from the field.

The Spurs also made all 15 of their free throws, but coach Gregg Popovich said defence was the key to victory.

“Shots went in tonight,” Popovich said. “That’s what happens. Some nights they don’t drop. Tonight the best part of our game was defence.”

And that’s what was lacking for the Clippers, coach Vinny Del Negro said.

“Give San Antonio credit – they were cutting hard, they were moving the basketball, we were very stagnant,” he said. “We weren’t physical. We weren’t contesting shots…

“We played terrible, just from start to finish tonight,” Del Negro said.

“We had a little glimpse in the second quarter, I thought we did some good things. But they jumped on us in the third and we were just chasing them the rest of the game.”

The Clippers have been touted as a potential new power in the Western Conference after the arrival of All-Star point guard Chris Paul to team with Blake Griffin, the explosive talent who earned Rookie of the Year honours last season.

Griffin led the Clippers with 28 points, while Paul scored 10 on 3-of-10 shooting.

The Spurs, long a Western Conference force, won 61 games last season but were surprised in the first round of the playoffs by a young, energetic Memphis team, sparking predictions that the team led by 35-year-old Duncan and featuring 34-year-old Ginobili and 29-year-old Parker had passed their prime.

In their first two games of this lockout-shortened season, however, the Spurs have now beaten both Memphis and the Clippers.

San Antonio led by as many as 12 points before Griffin capped a Clippers surge by soaring for a basket that knotted the score at 52-52 late in the second quarter.

A Ginobili three-pointer saw the Spurs take a 58-54 lead at half-time, and San Antonio took firm control in the third period, when they out-scored Los Angeles by 21 points to take a 96-71 lead.

The comfortable victory meant Popovich was able to give his stars some rest. Duncan played 25 minutes, Parker 26 and Ginobili 27.

“You wouldn’t trade it,” Popovich said of the luxury of resting his veterans for significant minutes.

It could prove especially important in the hectic, lockout-shortened season.

“It was a good night for us, and to get some rest was surely welcome,” Popovich said.

In New Orleans, Jarrett Jack had 21 points and nine assists in his regular-season debut, and New Orleans dominated in their home opener, beating the winless Boston Celtics 97-78.

Danny Granger scored nine of his 21 points in the fourth quarter as Indiana Pacers beat the Raptors 90 to 85. Paul George had 18 points, David West scored 14 and Roy Hibbert had 12 points and 10 rebounds.

At Auburn Hills, Michigan, rookie Kyrie Irving had 14 points and seven assists to help Cleveland Cavaliers beat Detroit 105 to 89, spoiling the Pistons’ first home opener with new owner Tom Gores.

Meanwhile Joe Johnson led another balanced attack with 18 points as as Atlanta beat Washington 101 to 83.

At Denver, Nene scored 25 points, reserve Al Harrington had 18 points and seven rebounds, and Denver rolled over the Utah 117 to 100.

At Charlotte, North Carolina, Dwyane Wade hit a bank shot over Gerald Henderson with 2.9 seconds left to lift unbeaten Miami over Charlotte 96 to 95.

In the other games Oklahoma City beat Memphis 98 to 95, Golden State beat New York 92-78, Philadelphia routed Phoenix 103 to 83, Atlanta beat Washington 101 to 83. — Agencies

Bosh said Saturday that he expects the Miami Heat to reconvene sometime soon, even though the NBA lockout has entered its third month with no apparent ending in sight. This would ordinarily be the time of year where most players start ramping up workouts anyway, and Bosh said he will be ready whether training camps begin on time or not.

“We’re going to make some plans. We’re going to plan to do something,” Bosh said in a telephone interview from Los Angeles. “I think just getting around each other, I think it’s important as far as team-building is concerned and just getting something going. We’re pretty much still in the process of doing that.”

Bosh was making an appearance Saturday with fans to help promote the video game “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.” Kevin Love of the Minnesota Timberwolves and Kevin Garnett of the Boston Celtics were among the group of other NBA players involved with the event.

Bosh said he used to play “a lot of video games” when he was younger, and said he still dabbles when his schedule allows.

“It’s cool to do cool things,” Bosh said.

But for now, he’s thinking more and more about the upcoming Heat season — and not back at what went wrong when Miami lost in six games to Dallas in last season’s NBA finals.

Bosh was emotionally crushed in the moments after Dallas won the title, though said Saturday said he’s gotten past most of the disappointment that came when seeing the championship slip away.

“There’s no reason to hold on to it,” Bosh said. “The only reason I hold on to it is when I need motivation. But other than that, it happened and there’s really no emotional attachment for me. I let all that out within 24 hours after I was done. It’s nothing I hang on. I talked about everything. I talked about it until I was blue in the face. And then once you do that, you just realize you have to move forward.”

His summer schedule made the task of moving past the finals somewhat easier.

Bosh’s wedding to the former Adrienne Williams was in July, and the pair have done so much traveling since that the All-Star has grown fond of saying they’ve been “M-I-A from MIA” in recent months. He is scheduled to appear on an episode of “Law and Order” later this month, and in the coming days he’ll be in New York for some Fashion Week events, U.S. Open tennis and possibly the Dallas Cowboys’ season-opener on Sept. 11 against the Jets.

Much like teammate LeBron James, Bosh — a Dallas native — is a huge Cowboys fan.

“I’m sure he’ll be there, too,” Bosh said.

Bosh has been working when he can at the University of Miami, as have players from a number of different franchises in recent weeks. Bosh said his training will intensify, as usual, now that summer is winding down.

And although he’s like everyone else in having no idea when the lockout will end, Bosh remains hopeful that a deal can be struck before too long.

“I’m an optimistic person anyway,” Bosh said. “The NBA is as good as it’s ever been right now and I think there’s no reason to miss out on it. So I think everybody will come to a conclusion. When you’re dealing with business, emotions and feelings get involved and that’s natural. You’re going to have arguments. But I think as long as everybody knows that and as long as we keep moving forward to a deal, then that’s progress.”

– Tim Reynolds

Ronzone out as asst GM with Timberwolves

Less than two years later, Ronzone has left his position as assistant general manager. Timberwolves spokesman Mike Cristaldi said Friday that Ronzone and the team “mutually agreed” to part ways just 16 months after he was hired away from the Detroit Pistons.

Timberwolves president of basketball operations David Kahn was not available for comment. The Associated Press left a phone message for Ronzone.

Ronzone helped Kahn in two drafts, but his biggest contribution to the team likely was helping to convince Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio to join the Timberwolves next season. Ronzone was essential to the delicate process, and his relationship with the Rubio family was a big part of finally luring Minnesota’s 2009 first-round draft pick to the NBA.

Ronzone was hired shortly after assistant GM Fred Hoiberg left the team to coach Iowa State, and was charged with not only improving the team’s international scouting resume, but also working closely on the NBA personnel side.

He helped work out a trade with the New York Knicks to bring Anthony Randolph to Minnesota and worked tirelessly with Kahn to reshape the Timberwolves into a younger, more athletic group.

Highly respected as an international scout, Ronzone worked with scout Pete Philo to help upgrade a department that previously was a weakness in Minnesota. In two drafts with Ronzone in the room, the Timberwolves selected Serbian forward Nemanja Bjelica and Brazilian big man Paulao Prestes in the second round in 2010.

The Wolves also had a blunder in June when they selected Congo forward Tanguy Ngombo in the second round, only to find out later that he was too old to be eligible for the draft. The Wolves eventually were allowed to retain the rights to the 26-year-old, but his status as a promising prospect is greatly diminished.

The Ngombo selection likely had little to do with the decision to part ways. Philosophical differences between Kahn and Ronzone on the direction of the franchise started to surface around draft time in June and may have contributed to the split.

It remains unclear what the Timberwolves will do, if anything, to replace Ronzone going forward.

Ronzone has been a big part of USA basketball for years, with his deep international roots a big part of the advance scouting that needs to be done for teams competing in the Olympics and world championships. He has served as director of international personnel, work that will continue heading into the London Games in 2012.

– Jon Krawczynski

WNBA

Bird, Cash lead Storm past Silver Stars, 70-60

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — With the playoffs set to begin in less than two weeks, the Seattle Storm look ready to defend their championship.

Sue Bird scored 15 points, Swin Cash had 14 points and 12 rebounds, and the Storm beat the San Antonio Silver Stars 70-60 on Saturday night. Lauren Jackson added 13 points as Seattle (19-13) won for the sixth time in seven games and took four of five in the season series against San Antonio.

The Storm lead Phoenix by one game for second place in the Western Conference, and home-court advantage in the firsst round.

“We’re in a situation where there are a couple of games left, we’re trying to get second place and we can really control our own destiny by getting wins,” Bird said. “So we just wanted to do whatever we had to do to get a win, and everybody did that tonight. It felt really, really good.”

Sophia Young scored 22 points and Becky Hammon had 14 for the Silver Stars (15-16), who lead Los Angeles by two games for the fourth and final playoff spot in the West. San Antonio also fell three games behind Phoenix, which beat the Sparks later Saturday.

“I thought (Sue) Bird and (Lauren) Jackson were Bird and Jackson,” Silver Stars coach Hughes said. “They have a very formidable team. They’re back in a rhythm that reminded me of what I saw of them last year.”

After the Silver Stars cut a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit to seven, Cash banked in a 3-pointer and Seattle never looked back.

Cash topped 4,000 career points, reaching the mark when Bird found her for a layup with 8:23 left in the third quarter.

The Storm outrebounded San Antonio 40-21 and shot 14 for 26 in the second half.

“The last game we played them, they beat us on the boards,” Cash said, “so we really wanted to make sure we got to the glass defensively and give them only one shot — and offensively to give ourselves second chances.”

Seattle has beaten San Antonio 10 of the last 11 times the teams have met. Jackson didn’t play the lone time the Silver Stars won.

Storm coach Brian Agler had considered holding out Jackson, who missed time earlier this season after having hip surgery, but the coach deferred to the three-time MVP.

“She wanted to play,” Agler. “She knows her body better than anybody. We didn’t play her big minutes or long stretches, but she wanted to play and be a part of it, so we let her do that.”

San Antonio’s standout rookies Danielle Robinson and Danielle Adams both struggled. Robinson was 1 for 10 and Adams 0 of 7.

The Storm committed eight turnovers in the third quarter but hit 7 of 12 shots from the field and outrebounded the Silver Stars 11-3. Seattle took its biggest lead, 47-40, on Katie Smith’s layup with two minutes left. Smith stole the ball, passed it to Tanisha Wright, who found Smith downcourt for the score.

Leading 47-44 after three quarters, Seattle went on a 15-4 run to start the fourth quarter, with Bird leading the way with seven points and an assist during the spurt.

Seattle, up 30-29 at halftime, used an 11-2 second-quarter run to turn a seven-point deficit into a two-point lead. Le’coe Willingham began the run with a jumper and Cash later capped it with five straight points after having gone scoreless up to that point. Cash had seven first-half rebounds, as Seattle held a 21-14 rebounding advantage at halftime.

The Silver Stars led Seattle 16-13 after the first quarter, holding Seattle to 6-of-18 shooting. San Antonio took its biggest lead at 16-11 on Young’s free throw.

Cash missed all five of her shots in the quarter. Bird led all scorers with seven points, hitting 3 of 4 shots. Her only miss came when she forced up a 3-pointer to beat the shot clock.

Dupree helps Mercury clinch playoff spot

PHOENIX (AP) — Candice Dupree had 22 points and a franchise-record 19 rebounds to help the Phoenix Mercury clinch a playoff spot with a 93-77 victory over the Los Angeles Sparks on Saturday night.

Uruguay into next round after 79-66 Paraguay win

Updated Sep 2, 2011 11:49 PM ET

MAR DEL PLATA, Argentina (AP)

Manu Ginobili of the San Antonio Spurs scored 23 points as Argentina remained unbeaten with an 81-74 victory over Puerto Rico on Friday night in the Olympic qualifying tournament for the Americas.

Luis Scola of the Houston Rockets added 16 points for Argentina (3-0).

”It’s really great to play in this place with people that encourage you in this way,” Ginobili said of Argentina’s home-country advantage.

Carlos Arroyo, who played with the Boston Celtics, had 24 points for Puerto Rico (3-1).

”It’s a little bit disappointing to lose, but we faced a team that plays with a lot of passion,” Arroyo said.

In other games Friday, Dominican Republic (3-1) beat Brazil (2-1) 79-74; Uruguay (1-2) defeated Panama (1-2) 77-61; and Canada (2-1) eliminated Cuba (0-3) with an 84-62 victory.

The top two teams in the 10-nation field receive berths in the London Olympics. The next three teams advance to a final Olympic qualifier.

The first round ends Saturday and the top four teams in each five-team group advances to the second round.

Al Horford of the Atlanta Hawks had 22 points, including going 3 of 3 from three-point range. Dominican Republic, which is coached by Kentucky’s John Calipari, bounced back from Thursday’s 73-72 loss to Canada.

”Horford was inspired,” Brazil coach Ruben Magnano said. ”We couldn’t get hold of the ball and get rebounds, and we also made some pretty childish turnovers.”

Jevohn Shepherd scored 13 points and Jermaine Anderson added 11 for Canada.

Cuba became the first team to be eliminated from the tournament.

”We are an amateur team with a lot of desire to learn because we are ambitious,” Cuba coach Ariel Amarillo said. ”I go away less hurt because the players left nothing out there; they played like Cubans, with lots of heart and sacrifice.”

MAR DEL PLATA, Argentina — Manu Ginobili of the San Antonio Spurs scored 23 points and Argentina remained unbeaten with an 81-74 victory over Puerto Rico on Friday night in the Olympic qualifying tournament for the Americas.

Luis Scola of the Houston Rockets added 16 points for Argentina (3-0).

“It’s really great to play in this place with people that encourage you in this way,” Ginobili said of Argentina’s home-country advantage.

Carlos Arroyo, who played with the Boston Celtics, had 24 points for Puerto Rico (3-1).

“It’s a little bit disappointing to lose, but we faced a team that plays with a lot of passion,” Arroyo said.

In other games Friday, Dominican Republic (3-1) beat Brazil (2-1) 79-74; Uruguay (1-2) defeated Panama (1-2) 77-61; and Canada (2-1) eliminated Cuba (0-3) with an 84-62 victory.

The top two teams in the 10-nation field receive berths in the London Olympics. The next three teams advance to a final Olympic qualifier.

The first round ends Saturday and the top four teams in each five-team group advances to the second round.

Al Horford of the Atlanta Hawks had 22 points, including going 3 of 3 from 3-point range. Dominican Republic, which is coached by Kentucky’s John Calipari, bounced back from Thursday’s 73-72 loss to Canada.

“Horford was inspired,” Brazil coach Ruben Magnano said. “We couldn’t get hold of the ball and get rebounds and we also made some pretty childish turnovers.”

Jevohn Shepherd scored 13 points and Jermaine Anderson added 11 for Canada.

Cuba became the first team to be eliminated from the tournament.

“We are an amateur team with a lot of desire to learn because we are ambitious, ” Cuba coach Ariel Amarillo said. “I go away less hurt because the players left nothing out there; they played like Cubans, with lots of heart and sacrifice.”