Spurs vs Mavs Game Three Previews: Duncan carrying Spurs in Playoffs

[duncan228]

Like old times: Duncan carrying Spurs in playoffs (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=AlCKFf57clpJkIogeoH8B0amxMEF?slug=ap-mavericks-spurs)

Dallas at San Antonio (http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/preview?gid=2010042324)
Game info: 9:30 pm EDT Fri Apr 23, 2010
TV: ESPN, FSSW
By Paul J. Weber

Tim Duncan turns 34 this weekend. The birthday planning began a year ago, when the San Antonio Spurs told their stiff and sore superstar to take an extra month off in the summer.

The Spurs have a reputation in the NBA for front-office smarts, but this decision hardly required brainpower: give Duncan a longer rest, and maybe they would get a few more good weeks out of him.

But on the cusp of May, who saw this roaring playoff start against Dallas coming?

“It was like the old days when you give him the ball and it’s automatic,” Spurs guard Tony Parker said.

After laboring in the final weeks of the regular season, Duncan is averaging 26 points and 12.5 rebounds against the Mavericks, who head to San Antonio on Friday with the series tied at one game apiece.

Duncan perhaps saved the Spurs from coming home in a 2-0 hole. As the Mavs threatened to erase a 20-point deficit Wednesday night, the Spurs went to their franchise cornerstone on four straight possessions in the fourth quarter. Duncan delivered each time.

Hardly anything new—but hardly anything the Spurs have seen recently. Crunch-time baskets over the last month had been the job of Manu Ginobili, whose resurgence since the All-Star break salvaged a Duncan-era worst No. 7 playoff seed for San Antonio.

Duncan, meanwhile, averaged 15.5 points down the stretch. He looked tired and rigid in his movement. As recently as late March he limped out of the locker room favoring his balky left knee, which has been guarded with a brace all season.

“For two or three weeks there toward the end of the season, I was starting to wear down a little bit,” Duncan said after scoring 25 points and grabbing 17 rebounds in Game 2.

But maybe this was the Spurs showing their wisdom again, knowing what others might have forgotten: that Duncan was saving his best for a championship run.

“He’s always that guy that gets taken for granted because he’s been doing that for so many years,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “Just being an anchor for us.”

The Mavs know that well. Starting with a thrilling seven-game series in 2006 and including last season, Dallas and San Antonio have met in 13 playoff games. Duncan has led the Spurs in scoring in nine of those meetings, at an impressive average of 31.1 points in those games.

Games 1 and 2 were Duncan’s first back-to-back games of 25 points or more since December.

“There’s a reason why he’s the best power forward to ever play this game,” Mavericks center Brendan Haywood said. “When you play your best defense and it looks like he has nowhere to go, he still finds a way to score.”

But ultimately, the Spurs haven’t beat Dallas in a playoff series since 2003. And the Spurs stealing home court advantage Wednesday night probably doesn’t mean much against the NBA’s best road team.

The Mavs were just one game better at home (28-13) than they were on the road (27-14) this season.

“The good thing is we won big road games all season long,” Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki said. “We’re a good road team, and we have to get a big one Friday.”

Duncan’s contract is up in 2012, and he said during the All-Star break that he would only extend his career longer if his body will let him.

Duncan chartered career lows in virtually every category this season, including minutes (31.3 per game). Besides playing less and starting his training regiment a month later this season, he also shed 15 pounds.

All to extend his season as long as possible. It’s working so far.

“If he’s out there on one leg in a wheelchair,” Spurs guard Richard Jefferson said, “we’re going to get him the ball.”

*********************

Team Stat Leaders

Points
Dirk Nowitzki Dal 25.0
Tim Duncan SA 17.9

Rebounds
Brendan Haywood Dal 9.3
Tim Duncan SA 10.1

Assists
Jason Kidd Dal 9.1
Tony Parker SA 5.7

*********************

Series Breakdown

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/playoffs/2010/sasdal

[duncan228]

Having taken a punch, Mavericks out to strike first in Game 3 (http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/basketball/mavs/stories/042310dnspomavslede.35de9a9.html)
By Eddie Sefko / The Dallas Morning News

Other than winning, nothing in the NBA world is more important to coaches than hitting first.

Every one of them has harped to his players that they have to be the aggressor, to take the fight to the foe. Act, don't react. Nobody wants to be thought of as wimpy.

Which brings us to the Mavericks. It would be accurate to say they did not hit first in Game 2, although Jason Terry took exception.

"I'm not going to say it was a case of not hitting first," Terry said. "I'd say we didn't even swing at all."

True that. It's hard to put somebody on his heels when you refuse to ball up your fist as the bell sounds.

The good news is Game 3 is coming like a haymaker. And the Mavericks have been really good this season at getting off the mat after getting bloodied. No glass jaw on this team.

The Mavericks are 10-4 in games following a double-figure loss this season. And there is no doubt they know the meaning of Game 3. The Mavericks had the best road record in the NBA this season, and the quicker they remind San Antonio of that fact, the better.

It will not happen easily. Most likely, the Mavericks won't be able to pretty-up this series and manufacture wins.

The Spurs made it a down-and-dirty affair Wednesday with their 102-88 win in Dallas.

And the Spurs know their history. They remember the Mavericks winning twice in San Antonio last year in the first round.

"We've lost at home to them so many times, so we've just got to stay humble, keep working hard knowing full well that it's going to be a long series," Manu Ginobili said.

The Mavericks are going to have to show the same urgency, desperation and willingness to get nasty that the Spurs displayed in Game 2 if they expect to regain an edge – and home-court advantage – in this best-of-7 battle.

"It's a five-game series now," Shawn Marion said. "They came in and got a game. We've got to come out and get that first game down there."

Several things must happen for that to take place.

First, the Mavericks must rebound better than they did in Game 2, when the Spurs dominated the boards.

"They shoot a lot of long shots, so there are going to be some long rebounds," Nowitzki said. "We just got to come up with those."

Second, Nowitzki has to come back firing after a curiously dull game on Wednesday. He made just 37.5 percent of his shots (9-of-24).

But there is good news. Nowitzki did not feel like he was overly mugged by the Spurs' defense. He's more inclined to chalk up his shooting simply to a bad night.

"I felt great about the looks I got," he said. "I kept trying, kept working, tried to get to the basket a little bit. If they give me those same looks on Friday, I'm going to take the same shots."

And, more than likely, he'll make more of them.

Lastly, the Mavericks will have to simply play like they are on life-support, which essentially they are. If they don't scratch out at least one win this weekend, they will find themselves in the unenviable situation of being down 3-1.

Not an impossible recovery, but certainly tough against a hot Spurs team.

"There's always going to be a higher level of urgency from the team that lost," coach Rick Carlisle said. "That's a constant."

It had better be. Without hitting first, the Mavericks will be hitting the golf course first.

[duncan228]

Eddie Sefko: Beaubois could start Game 3 to provide spark for Mavericks (http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/basketball/mavs/stories/042310dnsposefkobreakdown1.273b9459a.html)

Dallas Morning News Mavericks writer Eddie Sefko discussed the Mavericks and their playoff series with the Spurs on Thursday. Here are some highlights:

What adjustments do you see the Mavs making for game 3? They won't make huge adjustments, just tweaks, like the Spurs did between games 1 and 2. Maybe give Duncan a little different look defensively, but not by running a hard double-team at him. That's when he starts picking you apart.

Where the Mavericks need to adjust most is with an offense that didn't make the extra pass at times when they were drawing close late in the game. Even Dirk said they tried to start doing it by themselves instead of as a team late in the game. Just keep moving the ball and wear out those old Spur legs by making them work on defense for 20 seconds.

The Spurs defeated some of the best teams in the league at the end of the season without Tony Parker. Will the Mavs be able to rebound against this veteran team? All I can say is that the Spurs are good. But the Mavericks won a few tough games late, too. These are prideful teams that have no intention of losing in the first round, even though one of them will.

As I've maintained, it's a coin flip and something like a minor injury or a tough officiating call or even a cold-shooting night by one key individual could make the difference.

Dampier can’t contain Duncan, so why doesn’t Coach Carlisle play Haywood instead? Neither of them blew me away. I haven't run the numbers yet today, but I'm guessing Duncan was every bit as effective against Haywood as he was against Dampier.

I do know that in the fourth quarter, when Haywood played all 12 minutes and Duncan played 11, Duncan had 10 points on five-of-six shooting and five rebounds. I wouldn't exactly call that 40-20 pace an effective display of defense by Haywood.

How does the Spurs’ home record compare to the Mavs’ road record? The Mavericks were 27-14 on the road. The Spurs were 29-12 at home. The Mavericks' road record was best in the NBA. And by the way, it means absolutely zip right now.

Do you think Carlisle might consider inserting Beaubois into the game to give the Mavs a spark? I think he might consider starting the rookie, just as a change of pace, although it would be tough to do so in the hostile confines of the AT&T Center. Right now, the Mavericks need a big game out of Shawn Marion, Jason Kidd and/or Dampier-Haywood. If they don't get it, the rookie might be as good an option as they have.


Click here to view the rest of the chat. (http://mavsblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/04/live-chat-eddie-sefko-answers-your-maver-3.html)

[duncan228]

Game 3 preview: Dallas Mavericks at San Antonio Spurs (http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/basketball/mavs/stories/042310dnspomavscap.35db9e4.html)
Eddie Sefko
Dallas Morning News

Scouting the Mavericks

Game 2 was filthy and nasty. Game 3 probably will be, too, but it has to be a little more Mav-like, says one expert. "The Mavericks are not going to beat the Spurs scoring 88 points," TNT analyst Charles Barkley said. "The game is going to come down to tempo. Unless the Mavs get the speed up, they are not going to beat the Spurs." ... The Mavericks were 8-2 in the regular season when shooting 30 or more free throws and 1-0 in this series. ... Should Dirk Nowitzki shoot more 3-pointers? Probably, because he shot 66.7 percent (18-of-27) over the last 12 regular-season games and is 1-for-1 in the series. ... The Mavericks have 10 blocked shots in the series to two for the Spurs.

Scouting the Spurs

Manu Ginobili is shooting 60 percent in the series and averaging 24.5 points after two games. He's also 7-of-13, averaging five assists and 4.5 rebounds. Sort of a poor-man's LeBron James impersonation. ... It's hard to believe anybody would ask if Tim Duncan has lost anything as he closes in on his 34th birthday Sunday. He's averaging 26 points and 12.5 rebounds in the first two games. ... The Spurs were 29-12 at home this season, but the Mavericks were one of the 12 to win there. The Spurs were 10-2 at AT&T Center after the All-Star break. ... Coach Gregg Popovich seems to have pared his rotation down to seven, with Matt Bonner and Tony Parker the only bench guys getting more than marginal minutes.

[MavDynasty]

tbh beaubois needs to start at the 2 while caron moves at the 3. Marion has been ineffective as usual against the Spurs and Dallas needs some type of spark to get their offense and passing going. Everything was stagnant in Game 2 and Beaubois can actually get and FINISH at the rim.

[shelshor]

Referee Assignments
Fri. Apr 23
Dallas @ San Antonio: Dan Crawford; Dick Bavetta; Rodney Mott

[duncan228]

Marching band in San Antonio wakes up Mavericks early at hotel (http://mavsblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/04/early-wake-up-call.html)
Eddie Sefko/Dallas Morning News

The Mavericks have had trouble getting started in games a lot this season, including Game 2 when they fell behind early.

But they had no trouble waking up today.

Their hotel at San Antonio is on the Riverwalk and a marching band began tuning up for a Fiesta parade at 9 a.m.

Now I realize 9 a.m. is the middle of the day for some people. But in the NBA, it's closer to a time when you go to bed, not wake up.

Even on shootaround days, like today, a 9 a.m. wake-up call of trumpets, tubas and snappy drums is an unwelcome visitor. And it sounded like they were in the hotel lobby.

To top it off, the hotel's security alarm went off at 9:30, advising guests that an emergency situation had occurred.

About 15 minutes later, another announcement was blared saying that it was a false alarm.

If this were the old days, you'd guess that Gregg Popovich was having a friend who happens to run the hotel help out with some sleep deprivation for the Mavericks.

But that would never happen in these civilized times, would it? Not for two teams that love each other as much as these do, right?

[Spursmania]

:lmao:lmao

Can't wait to hear dumbass Cuban's remarks.

[duncan228]

2010 NBA Playoffs Odds: Spurs Betting Favorites vs Mavericks in Game 3 (http://www.vegassports-odds.com/201004232410/nba/headlines/2010-nba-playoffs-odds-spurs-betting-favorites-vs-mavericks-in-game-3)
by Brock Lanning

The Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs will try to take the lead tonight in Game 3 of their Western conference series at 9:30pm EST in a game that can be seen on ESPN and FOX SW. 2010 NBA playoffs odds have the Spurs listed as 3.5 point betting favorites at home while online sportsbooks have the game total sitting at 194. Tim Duncan was back to his old form on Wednesday netting 25 points and 17 rebounds for a double-double on Wednesday in Game 2 as the Spurs defeated the Mavericks 102-88 as 3.5 point underdogs while the NBA betting odds (http://www.vegassports-odds.com/nba/odds/) total went UNDER 194.5 listed at sportsbooks.

The Spurs evened up the series at 1-1 behind 23 points and five rebounds from Manu Ginobili and 19 points with seven rebounds from Richard Jefferson. "You could see it in his eyes that he was motivated," Parker said of Jefferson after the game. "Nobody likes to play bad and he knew he didn't have a good first game. Knowing his mentality, we knew he was going to come back." Heading into tonight's match-up on ESPN, the Spurs are 50-32 straight up on the season, 44-37-1 against the spread, 7-3 when playing on Friday and 5-5 after a win. Bet the Spurs -3.5 (http://sports.bodog.com/sports-betting/nba-basketball.jsp) as betting favorites at home in 2010 NBA playoffs odds for Game 3 against the Mavericks with a 10% bonus and 110% poker bonus.

Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavericks with 24 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists while Jason Terry netted 27 points and three assists. "They were a hot-shooting team and we were unable to keep them from being a hot-shooting team," Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said after the game. "When the ball's in the air, it's anybody's ball. They came up with all those plays. They got the loose balls and they were more opportunistic." Heading into tonight's game on ESPN, Dallas is 55-27 straight up on the season, 36-44-2 against the spread in NBA betting, 8-2 when playing on Friday and 7-3 after a loss. Bet the Mavericks +3.5 (http://sports.bodog.com/sports-betting/nba-basketball.jsp) as underdogs on the road in 2010 NBA playoffs odds for Game 3 against the Spurs with a 10% bonus.

Dallas is 5-0 straight up and against the spread in their last 5 games on the road. The Mavericks are 6-1 straight up and against the spread as NBA betting favorites for their last 7 games. San Antonio is 10-2 straight up in their last 12 games at home, 4-1 against the spread in their last 5 games at home and 17-8 against the spread in their last 25 games. The total has gone OVER in 5 of the Spurs last 5 games at home. Vegas odds (http://www.vegassports-odds.com/) at the Hilton sportsbook have the San Antonio Spurs -3.5 favorites at home against the Dallas Mavericks with a total of 194.

[m33p0]

Marching band in San Antonio wakes up Mavericks early at hotel (http://mavsblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/04/early-wake-up-call.html)
Eddie Sefko/Dallas Morning News

The Mavericks have had trouble getting started in games a lot this season, including Game 2 when they fell behind early.

But they had no trouble waking up today.

Their hotel at San Antonio is on the Riverwalk and a marching band began tuning up for a Fiesta parade at 9 a.m.

Now I realize 9 a.m. is the middle of the day for some people. But in the NBA, it's closer to a time when you go to bed, not wake up.

Even on shootaround days, like today, a 9 a.m. wake-up call of trumpets, tubas and snappy drums is an unwelcome visitor. And it sounded like they were in the hotel lobby.

To top it off, the hotel's security alarm went off at 9:30, advising guests that an emergency situation had occurred.

About 15 minutes later, another announcement was blared saying that it was a false alarm.

If this were the old days, you'd guess that Gregg Popovich was having a friend who happens to run the hotel help out with some sleep deprivation for the Mavericks.

But that would never happen in these civilized times, would it? Not for two teams that love each other as much as these do, right?
huh? is dallas on another time zone? btw, that was uncool.