SAN ANTONIO— The San Antonio Spurs’ Jeremy Sochan had one of his greatest games of the season against the Suns, scoring 26 points and grabbing 18 rebounds in a win Monday night at the Frost Bank Center.
He also hit the game-winning three-point jumper to give the Spurs the 104-102 victory, but it wasn’t only his offensive performance that carried them to victory.
His defense of the Suns’ Kevin Durant was crucial.
“Jeremy performed admirably tonight on both sides of the ball. “You could tell he was focused right away, and he forced a couple of turnovers,” said Zach Collins. “Jeremy’s defense took away many of Kevin Durant’s mid-range jumpers from the previous game. You have to tip your cap to him.”
Defending Durant is a difficult task.
He is one of the best offensive players in the NBA but Sochan made things difficult for the Suns forward on the court.
Durant finished with 29 points on 12-17 shooting, but he had to work for them with Sochan all over him.
“He took up the task against probably the best and most dynamic
The Spurs forward is used to defending the league’s finest, and he welcomes the challenge.
He gets under other players’ skin by continuously moving on defense and using his length to disrupt opposing defenses.
“The main thing was to be physical,” Sochan stated. “I felt like last game [versus Phoenix], we didn’t start out physical.”
“[Kevin Durant] is an extremely difficult matchup for everyone. He’s one of the best ever, and Jeremy never stopped working his buttocks off.” Coach Gregg Popovich stated.
Knowing he’d be entrusted with defending Durant again, he maintained his defensive stance.
Sochan entered the game as he does in all games: make life difficult for any of the finest players he’s protected in.
“I believe it’s just like any other game, guarding the greatest players. Get into them a little. “Just make things difficult for somebody like that [Durant],” he remarked. “So I think just making it as difficult as I can.”
Sochan has 57 thefts this season, up from 43 last year, and 39 blocks, up from 23 the previous year.
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