San Antone: Seeking Nine Rings

Passions ran high in Game 1, but basketball prevailed. The Western Conference Semi Finals kicked off in San Antonio this afternoon, and an exciting high-score overtime was the result, with both teams surviving flurries, sparking wild lead swings, as the fierce rival Rockets and Spurs vied for that precious game one victory. San Antonio would prove the victor, at least in game one, 135-143 in an OverTime thriller. Avery Bradley did himself no favors, picking up four fouls in the 1st Quarter of play, all but eliminating himself from the action. Chris Paul (38 points, 6 assists, 17/25) and James Harden (39 points, 15/26) executed fiercely upon his absence from the court, with CP3 carrying Houston in the first half, then again nearly winning the game in a late 4th Quarter push. James Harden kept the Rockets close in Overtime, despite little contribution by the Rockets bench unit. San Antonio won the third quarter 36-29, Houston won the fourth quarter 36-31 and the Spurs pulled away 2

Brandon Ingram took charge of his moment. Brandon Ingram had the play of this series, swiping the ball from a herculean Paul George (48 points) in the final minutes, pulling up on the fast break to drain the go-ahead 3PTer. The Spurs would win 118-124, as OKC would tirelessly foul, not going down without a fight. The San Antonio faithful were on edge throughout the second half, especially when its team wobbled during an 8-PT swing by the Thunder. Overcoming it, the Spurs were able to regain a small lead that would just barely hold courtesy of sharpshooting from T.J. Warren (who had a poor first half). Patty Mills also had his chance to shine, draining a cross-over 3PTer past Russell Westbrook out of a timeout to eclipse 100 points for the Spurs, having been up 95-99 prior. The Thunder had some ill-advised fouls in crunch time, giving T.J. Warren three shots at the line (he made all 3) which put the game out of reach. PG-13 had the best performance of this series. In defea

Patty Mills took up the mantle in Game 4. A tired, but tenacious Patty Mills drained nine three-pointers in this huge OverTime victory for the Spurs. After Dennis Schroder split free throws, the score was 118-118. Coach Popovich took a timeout and the Australian Sniper did the rest. The veteran sharpshooter capped off the pivotal successful effort with 32 points, hoisting up 25 shot attempts but never letting his team go down with the chance to seize control of a series against a tough foe in OKC. The crowd was not pleased to see its team fall 1-3 in this series, having just witnessed another one-point defeat in Game 3, at home no less. Russell Westbrook terrorized the Spurs in his best outing of the series: 31 points, 12 rebounds, 8 assists. Paul George also was stellar with 28 points. Behind those two, OKC needed more firepower. That is not to say the others didn't play decently: Andre Roberson had 11 points; Steven Adams put in 11 points, 11 rebounds with 3 steals &

T.J. Warren helped the Spurs regain control. The Spurs took back home court advantage, redeeming the defeat in Game 1, courtesy of 26 points by T.J. Warren (2 steals, 9/17, 3/8 3PT). Dejounte Murray continued to be floor general under pressure, notching 20 points on a perfect 8/8. Dragan Bender sparked the bench with 20 impressive points with 3 blocks. Brandon Ingram and Avery Bradley (4 steals) struggled, combining for 20 points. Patty Mills did what he could with 13 points and Iman Shumpert dropped 10 and swiped 3 steals. Kyle O'Quinn had a career-high 8 blocks in the win. In the very narrow defeat, Paul George had 27 points for OKC with 5 rebounds and 6 assists to go with 3 steals (9/21, 3/4 3PT). Russell Westbrook poured in 24 points with 9 assists. Andre Roberson scored 12 points, Markief Morris had 11 with 6 rebounds, and the trio of Steven Adams, Nerlens Noel & Dennis Schroder combined for 30 points.

The Spurs evened the series after a disheartening loss in Game 1, especially at home (a place they only lost at six times this season). The third quarter was blown open by San Antonio, winning it 41-26 and never looking back, nearly stifling the Thunder below 100 points. Avery Bradley, after a rough showing in Game 1, came to life for 30 points, nabbing two steals to go with six made 3PT shots, finishing with a +23 on the game. Meanwhile, Paul George had a showing similar to that of Brandon Ingram's underwhelming night in Game 1, going 5/17 overall for only 13 points. T.J. Warren conversely had 19 points with 2 blocks. Russell Westbrook admirably carried his squad in the first half, a force to be reckoned with that demanded 30 points also, going 12/24. To end the third quarter, Bradley hit a 3PTer and heard the whistle, solidifying the 4-PT play. Brandon Ingram did better this time around, notching 22 points with 4 blocks on 9/14. Patty Mills had 19 points, splashing in a qua

The Spurs came up small despite a pair of solid performances and a perseverant rally to tie the game at the buzzer, only for Russell Westbrook to take the road team home for the shocking win. Spoiling a heroic defensive effort by Avery Bradley that forced Andre Roberson to lose the ball out of bounds, setting up the desperate, off-balance layup by Brandon Ingram that went in to tie the score, Westbrook thundered the rim with fierce dunks as OKC roared past the Spurs in Overtime, in good time expanding a lead out of reach for the home team. Despite losing the 3rd Quarter 30-20, the Thunder went 29-24 on the Spurs in the fourth quarter and 24-18 in the extra period. The Spurs shot atrociously from the perimeter, making 16 but shooting well below 50%. San Antone went 45% overall, with OKC towering in the lane at 59%. The Thunder even survived missing nine free throw chances, destroying the Spurs inside 54-28 on the glass, and sixteen turnovers as the road team. In defeat, Patty Mi

The Warriors made a huge comeback, but fell short. The season series came to a fitting end tonight, with these titan rivals squaring off again, as the Spurs defended their home court in thrilling fashion, steamrolling Golden State early to take a twenty-point advantage. Since this inspiring win, the Spurs have gone on to finish the season at 55-27, with the Playoffs on the horizon and another rival, the OKC Thunder, as their first challenge to another championship defense. Kevin Durant hit the hardwood even harder, blocked by Kyle O'Quinn as Brandon Ingram drained the 3PTer to give the Spurs an 11-0 lead to begin this exciting showdown, dominating the first quarter 46-28. At one moment, San Antonio was shooting 80% from 3PT territory, as Omri Casspi's shot went in for the 34-53 command. The Spurs led 61-73 at halftime. Before long, the Warriors had trimmed it to 69-75, sparking an unbelievable 18-0 upswing, as Steph Curry buried the deathstroke in the corner for the m

Curry downed the Spurs at the buzzer. Everything seemed to be going rightly for the road visitors from San Antonio, breaking the game open on a 9-0 run, led by a fierce outpouring by T.J. Warren (30 points, 6 rebounds, 5 3PTers) in the first quarter. Then it all went wrong as the multifaceted nature of the Golden State Warriors came out to play, highlighted by two score-tying shots of late game heroics by an otherwise quiet Kevin Durant (11 points) and spearheaded by Stephen Curry (33 points, 13 assists, 3/4 3PT) whose buzzer beater epitomized the firepower on display at ORACLE Arena. Chef Curry found himself with the ball, the score a stalemate, after Kevin Durant was hounded in the corner by Brandon Ingram (15 points, 7/15, 0-5 3PT), elevating over Avery Bradley (21 points, three 3PTers) for the sensational dagger. The Spurs also showcased their own scoring abilities, despite falling short. Bradley even got a partial block on the ball, left to suffer in witness as it went thr