San Antonio 122, Cleveland 101
Chicks dig the long ball, but this writer swoons over the assist.
Put the two together and we have a game we can all agree upon.
Oh my, what a display. If you’ve seen or ready anything about the game, then you already know by now: 39 assists on 43 made field goals, 14 three pointers (all assisted), and just an absolute clinic on precision offense.
All the more surprising because the game started out so horrifically. 13 points in the first quarter, brought about by solid defense from Cleveland and rare miscues and over execution from San Antonio. It just looked like one of those nights. The team fell into a 12-point hole early in the 2nd quarter at which point they just came alive. That deficit was erased in a heartbeat, and the Spurs engineered a 22-point swing, going up as many as 10.
By the end of the 3rd quarter, the rout was on. The Spurs closed the third with back to back 3s, then opened the 4th with a Danny Green 3-pointer and a Danny Green and-1 3-point play. 12 points in about 2 minutes of game time, ending the ball game for all intents and purposes.
Remember, the Spurs crushed the Cavs in San Antonio at the beginning of the season, going into halftime up 65-32. So, in just 5 quarters of basketball, the Spurs outscored the Cavs by 64 points.
So that was a very good game. It’s nice to see this team again. Despite all the hand-wringing, the team is only a few games off of last year’s pace, and have a legitimate shot to end the season with a better record (last year’s team played .500 basketball over the final 20, in large part due to injuries to both Parker and Ginobili, something that hopefully will not repeat this season). And while the West is deeper and tougher, so is this Spur’s team. San Antonio almost won the Finals last year with Gary Neal and Cory Josepth as the back-up PGs. Remember that? Think about that for a minute, and realize that we now have a never-better Patty Mills and seamless-fit Belinelli, not to mention a better Boris and Manu rounding out the bench.
Last year’s team is remembered with the glow of the Finals’ run, but there’s nothing definitive to illustrate that they were better than this year’s model. Grant us good health, and I’ll take my chances against any team in the league.
Speaking of…guess who’s coming to town Thursday night?
