timvp
02-03-2009, 05:19 PM
The San Antonio Spurs hoped to land in Golden State, comfortably win the game against the Warriors and then prepare for their showdown against the Denver Nuggets. Things didn’t exactly go as plan. The Warriors gave fantastic effort and it took a couple of ferocious comebacks plus five minutes of extra time for the Spurs to escape with a 110-105 victory.
With the Spurs down by a dozen in the third, Manu Ginobili entered the game and his 17 points in the quarter helped the team close the gap. However, the Spurs once again found themselves down 12 points, this time with eight and a half minutes remaining in the fourth. San Antonio, thanks in large part to four points and two assists from Tony Parker, once again battled back and scored 12 straight points to tie the game.
After the Warriors rebuilt their lead to four points with a minute left in the contest, Ginobili sank four free throws in the final 50 seconds to tie the game. Bruce Bowen’s defense against Stephen Jackson forced overtime and once into the extra session, the Spurs were able to get off to a fast start and put the game away.
Golden State failed to close out the contest but their competitiveness was commendable. Stephen Jackson, specifically, was very good. He finished with a season-high 33 points and tied his season-high with 11 assists. The Warriors won’t be making the playoffs but they will likely be a dangerous spoiler in the second half of the season.
As for the Spurs, this win was more difficult than they had hoped but it was a good win nonetheless. They overcame an uncharacteristically high amount of turnovers, poor three-point shooting and a hot Jack to claim the victory. There were many opportunities to wave the white flag and move on but the Spurs kept fighting back.
Tim Duncan
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3173.jpg
42 minutes, 32 points, 15 rebounds, five assists, six turnovers
13-for-20 from the field, 6-for-8 from the line
Although Tim Duncan’s stat line looks gaudy, it was a rollercoaster ride of a night. He began the game playing amazing basketball, hitting seven of his first eight shot attempts and pulling down seven first quarter rebounds. Then Duncan cooled off, in large part due to fervent defense by Ronny Turiaf. Near the end of the game, Duncan once again got on a roll. However, after scoring the opening five points of the overtime period, Duncan picked up his sixth personal foul and was forced to watch the final three minutes of the game from the sidelines. Overall, Duncan was a bit inconsistent and a bit sloppy, although it’s tough to argue with 32 points, 15 rebounds and five assists.
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Manu Ginobili
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3380.jpg
35 minutes, 32 points, three assists, three rebounds, two steals, three turnovers
10-for-23 from the field, 1-for-6 on three-pointers, 11-for-12 at the line
The hits keep coming for Manu Ginobili. Against the Warriors, he turned his best two-game stretch of the season into his best three-game stretch by scoring a season-high 32 points in an unbelievable effort. He relentlessly attacked the rim and when he wasn’t scoring at the rim or drawing free throws, he was doing both. In a four minute segment of the third quarter, Ginobili had three and-ones on layups at the basket. The two fouls and four free throws he hit in the final minute of regulation were clutch and he continued his fantastic play in overtime. On the defensive end, Ginobili played well. Especially late in the game, he stayed mentally engaged on that end of the court and avoided roaming when it would have been detrimental to the team. All told, Spurs fans have to be very excited by how Ginobili is playing.
-------------------------------
Tony Parker
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3527.jpg
43 minutes, 23 points, seven assists, five rebounds, six turnovers
8-for-18 from the field, 7-for-12 at the line
At times, it appeared as if Tony Parker was headed toward a disappointing outing. He struggled with turnovers, missed a few easy shots, blew a couple defensive assignment and basically just looked out of rhythm. Then, out of nowhere, Parker found his rhythm in the middle of the fourth quarter. His best stretch came with about four and a half minutes left in the game and the Spurs down six points. Over the next minute, Parker fed Kurt Thomas for a jumper, fed Duncan for a slam and then finished off his flurry with a miraculous layup while drawing a foul. Defensively, though he began the game somewhat soft, I thought his defense was very good for much of the fourth and the overtime.
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Roger Mason, Jr.
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3628.jpg
35 minutes, seven points, four assists, two rebounds
3-for-8 from the field, 1-for-3 on three-pointers
It was more of the same for Roger Mason, Jr. against the Warriors. He just seems a little bit out of sorts and hasn’t completely figured out what his role should be right now. With the Big Three all playing well and deserving of shot attempts, Mason has to find his complementary niche. He did some good things against the Warriors, including his passing and, most of the time, his defense. Hopefully Mason can figure it out quickly because the Spurs need a dependable fourth scorer to truly become elite.
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Michael Finley
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3023.jpg
36 minutes, five points, five rebounds
2-for-6 from the field, 1-for-3 on three-pointers
Michael Finley was quiet for much of Monday night. The Warriors weren’t leaving him open, forcing him to create a few difficult looks. That said, Finley’s lone three-pointer was a trey in the fourth quarter that helped ignite the 12-0 run to tie the game. Defensively, he was overmatched most of the night, especially when guarding Jackson. Though, to his credit, Finley had a few good defensive possessions when the Spurs needed it most.
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Matt Bonner
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3748.jpg
18 minutes, four rebounds
0-for-1 from the field
Once upon a time, Matt Bonner went David Robinson against the Warriors in Oakland. Suffice to say, Bonner didn’t have another such night. In this affair, he took only one shot on the offensive end, struggled defensively and was overall more of a hindrance than a help. Bonner got a bit flustered on offense and made a number of mistakes. On defense, he was always matched up against a quicker player and was unable to compensate.
-------------------------------
Kurt Thomas
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3012.jpg
27 minutes, seven points, 15 rebounds
3-for-8 from the field, 1-for-1 at the line
After not playing in the first 17 minutes of the game, Kurt Thomas entered and played exceedingly well. He pulled down a season-high 15 rebounds, seven of which came on the offensive end. Thomas’ rebounding allowed the Spurs to punish Don Nelson for continuously trotting out small lineups. Besides his rebounding, Thomas authored a couple of important scores in the fourth quarter and overtime. Defensively, Thomas was very good. Surprisingly enough, Thomas’ quickness was his biggest asset on defense as he was able to stay in front of smaller and faster opponents.
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Bruce Bowen
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3167.jpg
16 minutes, four points, three rebounds
2-for-3 from the field, 0-for-1 on three-pointers
Bruce Bowen had a non-descript performance outside of one play. With the game tied and less than nine seconds remaining in regulation, Bowen bodied up Jackson and forced him into a miss as time expired. On the night, Bowen played the most consistent defense against Jackson, however Pop only opted to play him 16 minutes. Offensively, Bowen knocked down two of his three shots, including a rare offensive rebound tip in plus the foul.
-------------------------------
George Hill
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/4488.jpg
13 minutes, one assist, one block
0-for-2 from the field
George Hill had a nearly silent 13 minutes of action. He played acceptable defense but his typical energy wasn’t apparent. On offense, he could have been much more aggressive. Like Mason, Hill has to find a niche that will allow him to help out in a complementary role. For a rookie who is playing a new position, it’s not surprising that it’s taking him some time.
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Malik Hairston
http://d.yimg.com/a/p/sp/rivals/full.48185/a1523cd118938faf9ccbf0d319b2c625/malik-hairston.jpg
Two minutes, one assist
Pop inserted Malik Hairston in the game to begin the second quarter to help match up with the small ball lineup Nelson had in the game for Golden State. In most of his two minutes on the court, Hairston looked confused and unsure of himself. That said, the whole team looked confused and unsure because Pop had Bowen and Finley at center and power forward, respectively. Considering the weirdness, Hairston did a good job of simply avoiding spontaneous combustion.
-------------------------------
Gregg Popovich
http://www.cbc.ca/gfx/topstory/sports/popovich_gregg030428.jpg
Pop didn’t do a very good coaching job for much of the contest, however he eventually figured out what to do by using trial and error. His first experiment was using micro ball against the Warriors by using Bowen and Finley as the bigmen. That didn’t work. He then tried a zone defense and the Warriors were able to exploit it. Eventually, Pop found that he could have success if he used size against the smaller Warriors. By pairing Thomas and Duncan, the Spurs were finally able to gain traction. Overall, it wasn’t a great job of coaching but at least Pop figured it out before it was too late.
-------------------------------
Offense
The offense was ugly for much of the night, with a major culprit being the season-high of 20 turnovers. The 3-for-13 three-point shooting also didn’t help matters. Thankfully, the Spurs got to the line 34 times and got timely contributions from their Big Three. On the night, the Spurs finished the game shooting 46.1% from the field, 25-for-34 at the line and they also tallied 24 assists.
Defense
Once again, the Spurs followed a familiar pattern. They struggled on the defensive end for much of the first three quarters and then turned up the dial in the fourth. At one point in the final period, the Spurs forced ten straight missed shots by the Warriors. To close out the game, Golden State hit only eight of their final 26 shots. Previously, they were shooting 52.9% from the floor. Overall, the Warriors ended the night at 46.8% from the field, hit 5-of-13 three-pointers and finished with 23 assists. The Spurs did a good job of limiting free throw attempts (18), forcing turnovers (17) and hitting the boards (51-43).
Drive to Five
It was a good win against the Warriors but now the Spurs face an almost impossible task. Playing a back-to-back against the Denver Nuggets, it would be asking a whole lot for the Spurs to win this game. Having less than 20 hours to recuperate following a exhausting overtime contest while playing in altitude against a very good team? A win would be amazing but I’d gladly settle for the Spurs staying healthy.
Health.
With the Spurs down by a dozen in the third, Manu Ginobili entered the game and his 17 points in the quarter helped the team close the gap. However, the Spurs once again found themselves down 12 points, this time with eight and a half minutes remaining in the fourth. San Antonio, thanks in large part to four points and two assists from Tony Parker, once again battled back and scored 12 straight points to tie the game.
After the Warriors rebuilt their lead to four points with a minute left in the contest, Ginobili sank four free throws in the final 50 seconds to tie the game. Bruce Bowen’s defense against Stephen Jackson forced overtime and once into the extra session, the Spurs were able to get off to a fast start and put the game away.
Golden State failed to close out the contest but their competitiveness was commendable. Stephen Jackson, specifically, was very good. He finished with a season-high 33 points and tied his season-high with 11 assists. The Warriors won’t be making the playoffs but they will likely be a dangerous spoiler in the second half of the season.
As for the Spurs, this win was more difficult than they had hoped but it was a good win nonetheless. They overcame an uncharacteristically high amount of turnovers, poor three-point shooting and a hot Jack to claim the victory. There were many opportunities to wave the white flag and move on but the Spurs kept fighting back.
Tim Duncan
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3173.jpg
42 minutes, 32 points, 15 rebounds, five assists, six turnovers
13-for-20 from the field, 6-for-8 from the line
Although Tim Duncan’s stat line looks gaudy, it was a rollercoaster ride of a night. He began the game playing amazing basketball, hitting seven of his first eight shot attempts and pulling down seven first quarter rebounds. Then Duncan cooled off, in large part due to fervent defense by Ronny Turiaf. Near the end of the game, Duncan once again got on a roll. However, after scoring the opening five points of the overtime period, Duncan picked up his sixth personal foul and was forced to watch the final three minutes of the game from the sidelines. Overall, Duncan was a bit inconsistent and a bit sloppy, although it’s tough to argue with 32 points, 15 rebounds and five assists.
-------------------------------
Manu Ginobili
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3380.jpg
35 minutes, 32 points, three assists, three rebounds, two steals, three turnovers
10-for-23 from the field, 1-for-6 on three-pointers, 11-for-12 at the line
The hits keep coming for Manu Ginobili. Against the Warriors, he turned his best two-game stretch of the season into his best three-game stretch by scoring a season-high 32 points in an unbelievable effort. He relentlessly attacked the rim and when he wasn’t scoring at the rim or drawing free throws, he was doing both. In a four minute segment of the third quarter, Ginobili had three and-ones on layups at the basket. The two fouls and four free throws he hit in the final minute of regulation were clutch and he continued his fantastic play in overtime. On the defensive end, Ginobili played well. Especially late in the game, he stayed mentally engaged on that end of the court and avoided roaming when it would have been detrimental to the team. All told, Spurs fans have to be very excited by how Ginobili is playing.
-------------------------------
Tony Parker
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3527.jpg
43 minutes, 23 points, seven assists, five rebounds, six turnovers
8-for-18 from the field, 7-for-12 at the line
At times, it appeared as if Tony Parker was headed toward a disappointing outing. He struggled with turnovers, missed a few easy shots, blew a couple defensive assignment and basically just looked out of rhythm. Then, out of nowhere, Parker found his rhythm in the middle of the fourth quarter. His best stretch came with about four and a half minutes left in the game and the Spurs down six points. Over the next minute, Parker fed Kurt Thomas for a jumper, fed Duncan for a slam and then finished off his flurry with a miraculous layup while drawing a foul. Defensively, though he began the game somewhat soft, I thought his defense was very good for much of the fourth and the overtime.
-------------------------------
Roger Mason, Jr.
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3628.jpg
35 minutes, seven points, four assists, two rebounds
3-for-8 from the field, 1-for-3 on three-pointers
It was more of the same for Roger Mason, Jr. against the Warriors. He just seems a little bit out of sorts and hasn’t completely figured out what his role should be right now. With the Big Three all playing well and deserving of shot attempts, Mason has to find his complementary niche. He did some good things against the Warriors, including his passing and, most of the time, his defense. Hopefully Mason can figure it out quickly because the Spurs need a dependable fourth scorer to truly become elite.
-------------------------------
Michael Finley
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3023.jpg
36 minutes, five points, five rebounds
2-for-6 from the field, 1-for-3 on three-pointers
Michael Finley was quiet for much of Monday night. The Warriors weren’t leaving him open, forcing him to create a few difficult looks. That said, Finley’s lone three-pointer was a trey in the fourth quarter that helped ignite the 12-0 run to tie the game. Defensively, he was overmatched most of the night, especially when guarding Jackson. Though, to his credit, Finley had a few good defensive possessions when the Spurs needed it most.
-------------------------------
Matt Bonner
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3748.jpg
18 minutes, four rebounds
0-for-1 from the field
Once upon a time, Matt Bonner went David Robinson against the Warriors in Oakland. Suffice to say, Bonner didn’t have another such night. In this affair, he took only one shot on the offensive end, struggled defensively and was overall more of a hindrance than a help. Bonner got a bit flustered on offense and made a number of mistakes. On defense, he was always matched up against a quicker player and was unable to compensate.
-------------------------------
Kurt Thomas
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3012.jpg
27 minutes, seven points, 15 rebounds
3-for-8 from the field, 1-for-1 at the line
After not playing in the first 17 minutes of the game, Kurt Thomas entered and played exceedingly well. He pulled down a season-high 15 rebounds, seven of which came on the offensive end. Thomas’ rebounding allowed the Spurs to punish Don Nelson for continuously trotting out small lineups. Besides his rebounding, Thomas authored a couple of important scores in the fourth quarter and overtime. Defensively, Thomas was very good. Surprisingly enough, Thomas’ quickness was his biggest asset on defense as he was able to stay in front of smaller and faster opponents.
-------------------------------
Bruce Bowen
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/3167.jpg
16 minutes, four points, three rebounds
2-for-3 from the field, 0-for-1 on three-pointers
Bruce Bowen had a non-descript performance outside of one play. With the game tied and less than nine seconds remaining in regulation, Bowen bodied up Jackson and forced him into a miss as time expired. On the night, Bowen played the most consistent defense against Jackson, however Pop only opted to play him 16 minutes. Offensively, Bowen knocked down two of his three shots, including a rare offensive rebound tip in plus the foul.
-------------------------------
George Hill
http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/images/basketball/nba/players/4488.jpg
13 minutes, one assist, one block
0-for-2 from the field
George Hill had a nearly silent 13 minutes of action. He played acceptable defense but his typical energy wasn’t apparent. On offense, he could have been much more aggressive. Like Mason, Hill has to find a niche that will allow him to help out in a complementary role. For a rookie who is playing a new position, it’s not surprising that it’s taking him some time.
-------------------------------
Malik Hairston
http://d.yimg.com/a/p/sp/rivals/full.48185/a1523cd118938faf9ccbf0d319b2c625/malik-hairston.jpg
Two minutes, one assist
Pop inserted Malik Hairston in the game to begin the second quarter to help match up with the small ball lineup Nelson had in the game for Golden State. In most of his two minutes on the court, Hairston looked confused and unsure of himself. That said, the whole team looked confused and unsure because Pop had Bowen and Finley at center and power forward, respectively. Considering the weirdness, Hairston did a good job of simply avoiding spontaneous combustion.
-------------------------------
Gregg Popovich
http://www.cbc.ca/gfx/topstory/sports/popovich_gregg030428.jpg
Pop didn’t do a very good coaching job for much of the contest, however he eventually figured out what to do by using trial and error. His first experiment was using micro ball against the Warriors by using Bowen and Finley as the bigmen. That didn’t work. He then tried a zone defense and the Warriors were able to exploit it. Eventually, Pop found that he could have success if he used size against the smaller Warriors. By pairing Thomas and Duncan, the Spurs were finally able to gain traction. Overall, it wasn’t a great job of coaching but at least Pop figured it out before it was too late.
-------------------------------
Offense
The offense was ugly for much of the night, with a major culprit being the season-high of 20 turnovers. The 3-for-13 three-point shooting also didn’t help matters. Thankfully, the Spurs got to the line 34 times and got timely contributions from their Big Three. On the night, the Spurs finished the game shooting 46.1% from the field, 25-for-34 at the line and they also tallied 24 assists.
Defense
Once again, the Spurs followed a familiar pattern. They struggled on the defensive end for much of the first three quarters and then turned up the dial in the fourth. At one point in the final period, the Spurs forced ten straight missed shots by the Warriors. To close out the game, Golden State hit only eight of their final 26 shots. Previously, they were shooting 52.9% from the floor. Overall, the Warriors ended the night at 46.8% from the field, hit 5-of-13 three-pointers and finished with 23 assists. The Spurs did a good job of limiting free throw attempts (18), forcing turnovers (17) and hitting the boards (51-43).
Drive to Five
It was a good win against the Warriors but now the Spurs face an almost impossible task. Playing a back-to-back against the Denver Nuggets, it would be asking a whole lot for the Spurs to win this game. Having less than 20 hours to recuperate following a exhausting overtime contest while playing in altitude against a very good team? A win would be amazing but I’d gladly settle for the Spurs staying healthy.
Health.