Reply With Quote
Oopps...i could only find one article in this newspaper. Kori/LJ...may want to merge into my other Detroit Articles thread...
http://www.freep.com/news/latestnews...9_20050610.htm
Spurs stymie Pistons; Manu finishes 'em off
BY PERRY A. FARRELL
FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER
Friday, June 10, 2005
SAN ANTONIO -- Too much Tim Duncan early and too much Manu Ginobili late.
The San Antonio Spurs rode Duncan's dominant play inside and the herky-jerky moves of Ginobili to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series with an 84-69 victory Thursday at the SBC Center.
Duncan led the winners with 24 points and 17 rebounds while Ginobili scored 15 of his 26 points in the fourth.
The Spurs took control with a 12-2 run in the fourth quarter. The outburst put them ahead, 67-55. Their lead eventually grew to 17.
The Pistons responded with a 10-0 rally to trim it to 74-67 but a Ginobili dunk and a triple on consecutive trips killed any hopes of a comeback.
Detroit's offensive execution, thanks to the Spurs, was terrible after the first quarter. They shot just 37.7% for the game. Detroit hasn't won in San Antonio in nine tries and if they don't produce a better effort Sunday it'll be 10.
Chauncey Billups was the only consistent offensive threat for the defending champs with 25 points on nine of 16 shots from the field.
Ben Wallace picked up the first technical of the Finals when he was called for a blocking foul on Ginobili with 10:23 left to play. He threw his headband in disgust.
The technical came at a time when the Spurs started a 5-0 run to take a 60-53 lead on a Ginobili lay-up.
The left-handed Ginobili took control after making the technical free throw. He hit a driving runner to keep the Spurs ahead by seven after Billups scored.
After Tony Parker scored to put the Spurs up nine, Ginobili converted a three-point play with 7:35 left. The free throw put the Spurs ahead, 67-55.
Sloppy with passes and hounded by the Spurs' defense, the Pistons squandered a 19-7 start and led by two at halftime.
San Antonio took its first lead of the second half, 42-41, on a put-back by Duncan.
It was short-lived as Billups scored for the visitors, but the Pistons offense clearly wasn't clicking.
Oopps...i could only find one article in this newspaper. Kori/LJ...may want to merge into my other Detroit Articles thread...
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions