azdad1978
Championship!!!!
May 25, 2005
By Mike Tulumello, Tribune
The Suns will spend Memorial Day weekend in San Antonio thinking about what might have been:
With Joe Johnson in the lineup, would they have split at home with the mighty Spurs, or even swept them?
Or is their defense just not quite good enough — Johnson or no Johnson — when it comes to trying to knock off the game’s most balanced team?
Unless Johnson can give them a major jolt — he’s expected to return in the next game — this series now takes on a feeling of inevitability after the Spurs’ 111-108 win over the Suns Wednesday at America West Arena.
The Spurs now lead the Western Conference finals, 2-0. No team has lost the first two at home and won a conference finals series.
To play another game at home, the Suns will need to split in the Alamo City.
Suns coach Mike D’Antoni tried to keep a stiff upper lip:
"There’s no one in the locker room who doesn’t believe we can’t go to San Antonio and win.
"We know it’s going to be tough. . . . But if we can get Game 3, it’s a different ballgame."
At the same time, he nodded toward the Spurs’ vast experience and seemed to hint the Suns’ best shot might have to come at another time.
"A lot of it is experience. A lot of times you have to sample the water before you jump in."
The Suns also can mull over how they shot nearly 56 percent and still lost.
"It’s mind-boggling," the Spurs’ Brent Barry said.
"We’ve got to get that percentage down," superstar Tim Duncan said. "It’s hard to beat a team in that situation. . . . We were a bit lucky tonight."
Asked about this, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich saluted the Suns, saying, "We stunk on ‘D’. Is that fair?
"Part of the reason is because Steve (Nash) is the MVP of the league and Amaré (Stoudemire) is unstoppable."
While all of this may be true, the Suns still lost because they (again) couldn’t stop San Antonio in the final quarter when the Spurs hit 71 percent of their shots.
They scored on 12 of their final 13 possessions.
Nash, who had another brilliant game with 29 points and 15 assists, sent in his congratulations on this stunning point.
While trying to put his best face on the situation — "If we play as well as we did tonight, we’ve got a great chance to win the next game" — Nash also said, "The last two games, they have been phenomenal at making big shots in the fourth quarter.
"At some point, you have just got to congratulate them and say, ‘You know, they are better than us tonight.’ "
In a see-saw game, Nash put the Suns ahead for the last time, 102-100, with a 3-pointer and 2:56 left.
Robert Horry, the old pro who often sleep-walks through the regular season, then wakes up in the playoffs, nailed a 3-pointer to give the Spurs a 103-102 lead with 2:31 left.
Popovich said he drew up the play. Manu Ginobili disagreed ("I think he’s taking credit when he shouldn’t"), saying Horry told him he’d be open.
"I’d go more with Manu on that one," said Duncan, who had 30 points and 8 rebounds. "He took it upon himself to pop out there."
Afterward, Duncan told Horry, ‘‘ ‘Dude, I’m so glad you shot that ball.’ I was so tired at that point."
Nash missed a 15-footer, then Ginobili (26 points) drove past Shawn Marion for a reverse layup.
Stoudemire (37 points, 8 rebounds) missed an uncontested layup with 1:39 left, then Ginobili buried a 20-footer — and the Suns — for a decisive 107-102 lead.
The Suns had one last prayer of a shot in the final seconds. Down 111-108 — the same score they trailed by in Dallas on Friday when Nash hit his miracle shot of the season — Nash lofted a 3-pointer in traffic.
This one hit the front of the rim. And the Suns could start their what-might-have-beens.
The Suns once again struggled through a brutal first quarter, and the Spurs took advantage.
They turned it over seven times (four by Nash, three by Stoudemire) while the Spurs hit 3-of-5 on 3-pointers to take a 31-21 lead.
The Spurs led 53-46 in the closing minutes of the half. Then the game started to change.
Nash hit a jumper, then Quentin Richardson hit a follow shot, Jim Jackson nailed a 3, then Richardson hit 1-of-2 free throws with 1.2 seconds left to give the Suns a 54-53 lead at the break. Stoudemire took over the game midway through the third quarter. He attacked the hoop, scoring seven points in an 11-0 run that gave the Suns a 75-64 lead. The Suns led 85-78 in the closing moments of the third quarter, but the drives of Tony Parker and the inside dominance of Duncan pushed the Spurs back ahead, 100-97, with 3:40 left.
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=41930
By Mike Tulumello, Tribune
The Suns will spend Memorial Day weekend in San Antonio thinking about what might have been:
With Joe Johnson in the lineup, would they have split at home with the mighty Spurs, or even swept them?
Or is their defense just not quite good enough — Johnson or no Johnson — when it comes to trying to knock off the game’s most balanced team?
Unless Johnson can give them a major jolt — he’s expected to return in the next game — this series now takes on a feeling of inevitability after the Spurs’ 111-108 win over the Suns Wednesday at America West Arena.
The Spurs now lead the Western Conference finals, 2-0. No team has lost the first two at home and won a conference finals series.
To play another game at home, the Suns will need to split in the Alamo City.
Suns coach Mike D’Antoni tried to keep a stiff upper lip:
"There’s no one in the locker room who doesn’t believe we can’t go to San Antonio and win.
"We know it’s going to be tough. . . . But if we can get Game 3, it’s a different ballgame."
At the same time, he nodded toward the Spurs’ vast experience and seemed to hint the Suns’ best shot might have to come at another time.
"A lot of it is experience. A lot of times you have to sample the water before you jump in."
The Suns also can mull over how they shot nearly 56 percent and still lost.
"It’s mind-boggling," the Spurs’ Brent Barry said.
"We’ve got to get that percentage down," superstar Tim Duncan said. "It’s hard to beat a team in that situation. . . . We were a bit lucky tonight."
Asked about this, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich saluted the Suns, saying, "We stunk on ‘D’. Is that fair?
"Part of the reason is because Steve (Nash) is the MVP of the league and Amaré (Stoudemire) is unstoppable."
While all of this may be true, the Suns still lost because they (again) couldn’t stop San Antonio in the final quarter when the Spurs hit 71 percent of their shots.
They scored on 12 of their final 13 possessions.
Nash, who had another brilliant game with 29 points and 15 assists, sent in his congratulations on this stunning point.
While trying to put his best face on the situation — "If we play as well as we did tonight, we’ve got a great chance to win the next game" — Nash also said, "The last two games, they have been phenomenal at making big shots in the fourth quarter.
"At some point, you have just got to congratulate them and say, ‘You know, they are better than us tonight.’ "
In a see-saw game, Nash put the Suns ahead for the last time, 102-100, with a 3-pointer and 2:56 left.
Robert Horry, the old pro who often sleep-walks through the regular season, then wakes up in the playoffs, nailed a 3-pointer to give the Spurs a 103-102 lead with 2:31 left.
Popovich said he drew up the play. Manu Ginobili disagreed ("I think he’s taking credit when he shouldn’t"), saying Horry told him he’d be open.
"I’d go more with Manu on that one," said Duncan, who had 30 points and 8 rebounds. "He took it upon himself to pop out there."
Afterward, Duncan told Horry, ‘‘ ‘Dude, I’m so glad you shot that ball.’ I was so tired at that point."
Nash missed a 15-footer, then Ginobili (26 points) drove past Shawn Marion for a reverse layup.
Stoudemire (37 points, 8 rebounds) missed an uncontested layup with 1:39 left, then Ginobili buried a 20-footer — and the Suns — for a decisive 107-102 lead.
The Suns had one last prayer of a shot in the final seconds. Down 111-108 — the same score they trailed by in Dallas on Friday when Nash hit his miracle shot of the season — Nash lofted a 3-pointer in traffic.
This one hit the front of the rim. And the Suns could start their what-might-have-beens.
The Suns once again struggled through a brutal first quarter, and the Spurs took advantage.
They turned it over seven times (four by Nash, three by Stoudemire) while the Spurs hit 3-of-5 on 3-pointers to take a 31-21 lead.
The Spurs led 53-46 in the closing minutes of the half. Then the game started to change.
Nash hit a jumper, then Quentin Richardson hit a follow shot, Jim Jackson nailed a 3, then Richardson hit 1-of-2 free throws with 1.2 seconds left to give the Suns a 54-53 lead at the break. Stoudemire took over the game midway through the third quarter. He attacked the hoop, scoring seven points in an 11-0 run that gave the Suns a 75-64 lead. The Suns led 85-78 in the closing moments of the third quarter, but the drives of Tony Parker and the inside dominance of Duncan pushed the Spurs back ahead, 100-97, with 3:40 left.
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=41930
