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SAN ANTONIO -- Spurs coach Gregg Popovich admitted he is getting antsy for a loss. Hell have to wait. Marco Belinelli scored 18 points and San Antonio never trailed after its opening possession, extending its winning streak to 17 games with a 96-80 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday night. The Spurs once again used fluid passing and tireless player movement to overwhelm an opponent. San Antonio finished with 24 assists while going 37 for 78 from the field in snapping New Orleans five-game winning streak. "They move around a lot, and run their sets hard," Pelicans guard Brian Roberts said. "Whatever theyre running, they are moving constantly. It puts pressure on a defence to play 24 seconds worth." Roberts scored 18 points, Austin Rivers added 16 points, Tyreke Evans had 11 points and Al-Farouq Aminu had eight points and 10 rebounds for New Orleans (32-41). Kawhi Leonard and Manu Ginobili scored 15 points each, Patty Mills added 13 and Tim Duncan had 12 points and eight rebounds. San Antonio (57-16) extended its lead to 3 1/2 games over Oklahoma City (53-19) for the leagues best record. In addition to winning its last 17, the Spurs have won 20 of 21 and have not lost since falling 106-85 to the Phoenix Suns on Feb. 21. "It is sweet to be a part of that," Ginobili said. "It is not something that happens very often because it is a long spread of game, a month or two. Here or there you have a bad game or the opponent has a bad one, but a lot of things have combined for us to have this type of streak. We played really well and we are healthy." New Orleans was without Anthony Davis, its leading scorer and rebounder. Davis injured his left ankle 4 minutes into the Pelicans victory over Utah on Friday night. "Its a joint/soft tissue injury right now," New Orleans coach Monty Williams said. "He did it in his normal routine. Hes listed as day to day. Well see how he feels tomorrow." Williams said the Pelicans would have had a tough task even with Davis and the Spurs showed why early. "They jumped on us," Evans said. "They just moved the ball hit shots and we couldnt make a shot." San Antonio opened the game on a 23-6 run, with Belinelli picked up where he left off Friday night. He was 4 for 5 on 3-pointers against New Orleans after going 6 for 9 on 3-pointers Friday while scoring a game-high 27 points in a 133-102 victory in Denver. "Hes been really steady for us and he plays a great all-around game," Popovich said. Belinelli made his first two 3-pointers against the Pelicans after opening with a 15-foot jumper off an assist from Duncan. Belinellis first 3-pointer with 6 minutes remaining in the first quarter gave San Antonio a 16-4 lead. The Spurs would never lead by less than 10 points the rest of the way. After Alexis Ajinca hit a 17-foot jumper on the games opening possession, New Orleans did not score again until Greg Stiemsmas dunk with 8:21 remaining in the first quarter. The three-minute drought was followed by another three-minute drought. "We couldnt finish in the paint tonight," Williams said. "We were 18 for 48 in the paint. Thats a bad number for us. Were a team that usually is high when it comes to points in the paint." Rivers layup with 30.9 seconds pulled New Orleans within 69-59 with 30.9 seconds left in the third quarter, but Belinelli hit back-to-back 3s to fuel a 12-3 run and San Antonio reasserted its control. San Antonio travels to Indiana to play the Eastern Conference-leading Pacers on Monday. NOTES: Three-time Masters champion Phil Mickelson sat courtside during the game cheering the Spurs. Mickelson withdrew Saturday from the third round of the Valero Texas Open after injuring an oblique muscle. "I pulled a muscle on my downswing trying to hit the ball hard on the second hole (his 11th)," Mickelson said in a statement. "It just killed and it wouldnt subside for 10 or 12 seconds." ... Spurs W Danny Green (right foot inflammation) and Matt Bonner (right calf strain) both sat out the game. ... Roberts played 29 minutes after being listed as day to day with a left knee bone bruise. Leandro Barbosa Jersey . -- After a year spent travelling the world, Brooks Koepka suddenly is in a position to play a lot more golf at home. Kelly Oubre Jr. Jersey ." One game is checked off, 15 remain and the next one to get crossed out could come Tuesday night when the defending champion Heat host the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference playoff series. http://www.officialsunsfanstore.com/devin-booker-suns-jersey/ .m. ET, CBSOPENING LINE — Packers by 3RECORD VS. SPREAD — New England 7-4, Green Bay 5-5-1SERIES RECORD — Tied 5-5. Kelly Oubre Jr. Suns Jersey . scored 18 of his career- high 28 points in the first half, as fifth-ranked Ohio State dominated No. Kevin Johnson Suns Jersey . Although head coach Randy Carlyle jokingly wondered how much actual training Bolland got done while in London. "I dont know how much training goes on when you go back to the junior team that you played for so I wouldnt read too much into that," laughed Carlyle after the Maple Leafs were put through an up-tempo practice that concluded with a 10-minute bag skate on Thursday.DETROIT -- Even by the Detroit Pistons recent standards, this was an abrupt change. Detroit fired coach Maurice Cheeks on Sunday after less than a year as coach, with the Pistons languishing well below .500 despite off-season moves aimed at putting the struggling franchise back in contention. Detroit is 21-29, and although the Pistons still have a decent chance to make the playoffs in the Eastern Conference, their new roster has performed erratically. "This was a difficult decision for the organization to make but we needed to make a change," team president Joe Dumars said in a statement. "We have great respect for Maurice and appreciate his hard work." A person with knowledge of Detroits plans said assistant John Loyer will take over as interim coach. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the team had not announced an interim coach yet. The Pistons havent made the playoffs since being swept in the first round in 2009 -- in Michael Currys only season as their coach. Since then, Detroit has gone through two seasons under John Kuester and two under Lawrence Frank. After neither of them could make any real progress, Cheeks was brought in as Detroits ninth coach since the 1999-2000 season. In addition to hiring Cheeks last off-season, Detroit signed forward Josh Smith and traded for point guard Brandon Jennings, trying to bolster a roster that already included young big men Andre Drummond and Greg Monroe. But the mix has been uninspiring for the most part. The Pistons have had problems defensively and have struggled to close out games in the fourth quarter. The poor attendance thats become commonplace at The Palace hasnt really improved -- and Detroits 11-15 home record hasnt helped. "Our record does not reflect our talent and we simply need a change," Pistons owner Tom Gores said Sunday. "We have not made the kind of progress that we should have over the first half of the season. This is a young team and we knew there would be growing pains, but we can be patient only as long as there is progress." Detroit is only a half-game out of the final playoff spot in the East, but thats largely because so many teams in the conference are having similar problems. The Pistons are only three games better than they were after 50 games last season. Cheeks became the first coach to leave or be fired after 50 games or fewer with an NBA team since Bob Weiss, who coached only 30 games forr Seattle in 2005-06, according to STATS.ddddddddddddThat does not include interim coaches. "The responsibility does not fall squarely on any one individual, but right now this change is a necessary step toward turning this thing around," Gores said. "I still have a lot of hope for this season and I expect our players to step up. I respect and appreciate Maurice Cheeks and thank him for his efforts; we just require a different approach." The Pistons have won four of six, including back-to-back blowouts at home against Brooklyn and Denver on Friday and Saturday. They host San Antonio on Monday night, and the team has not made any announcement about who will coach that game. Cheeks previously coached Portland and Philadelphia, a team he won an NBA title with as a point guard. The Pistons gave him his third shot to be an NBA head coach in June. Gores was in attendance at a recent game and said he thought the team was better than its record. "Im not satisfied. Our job is to make sure that our players are at their maximum," Gores said after that Feb. 1 game against Philadelphia. "Im not satisfied with the job Im doing. Im not satisfied with the job anyone is doing." At that point, speculation centred around the upcoming trade deadline and the possibility that Detroit might shake up its roster again. Now, the Pistons are hoping another coaching change can improve the franchises outlook. Detroit made the conference finals six straight years from 2003-08, but the teams fall was swift after that, and rebuilding has been difficult. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Pistons championship in 2004 -- and the atmosphere at The Palace could hardly be more different. "Were focused on how to make our players the best," Gores said earlier this month. "I dont think weve done our best job of making sure they are at their best. They are working at 100 per cent, but these are young men who need a lot of preparation." The Pistons became the third major pro team in Detroit to make a coaching or managerial change in the past six months. Jim Leyland of the Tigers stepped down and was replaced by Brad Ausmus after last season, and the Lions fired Jim Schwartz in late December, eventually replacing him with Jim Caldwell. So Ausmus, who has yet to manage a game, is now the second-longest tenured manager or coach of the citys four major pro teams. Yahoo Sports first reported Cheeks firing. ' ' '