SPUR-EVER: Ten Titles

Somehow, someway, Anthony Davis would not let the Lakers go down tonight. He had 40 points, 18 rebounds, 6 blocks. LeBron James had 31 points, 8 rebounds, 9 assists. JaVale McGee continued to be a pest down low with 17 rebounds and 12 points with 4 blocks. Danny Green & Kentavious Caldwell-Pope combined for 25 points. A free throw mini-war ensued in the closing seconds, as the Spurs tied the ball game and KCP missed a tough shot at the buzzer. Could the Spurs rally and end this series? Joe Harris had a flash-bulb chance late, just barely missing the 3PTer at the buzzer--a would-be game-winner, series-ending shot. Instead, this series returns to the city of angels after the quarters were split 29-27, LA; 23-29, SA; 24-25, SA; 30-25, LA & 20-18, LA in OverTime. The Lakers shot 49% to 48% by the Spurs, in a game that had San Antonio bury 15 three-pointers. They even won the fast break 30-20 and crushed LA's bench, 47-18. The Lakers won the paint though, 76-54. The Sp...

LeBron shot 3-13 tonight. Anthony Davis stormed off the court once the buzzer sounded, clearly upset about the outcome that saw the Spurs go up by 16 during a cold shooting spell in the third quarter. Taurean Prince had a comeback spectacle with 20 points, 2 steals on an 8-12 stroke. Dejounte Murray had 14 points with 7 assists, nabbing 2 steals. Brandon Ingram dropped 14, P.J. Tucker for 13, J.R. Smith for 12 with Mosgov & Allen corralling 20 rebounds with 3 blocks. The Spurs went 30-14 over LA in the third quarter, allowing its stars to rest the 4th. Anthony Davis poured his heart out for 30 points & 13 rebounds. KCP went a cold 4-13, finishing with 11. LeBron had his worst game of the post-season with 10/7/6, 4 turnovers on 3-13 shooting. JaVale McGee's effort earned him 10 points, 17 rebounds. Dwight Howard & even Lebron were targeted by the Spurs, missing free throws down the stretch. The Lakers had an awful 15 turnovers, compared to only two by San Antone. ...

The Spurs redeemed an awful performance at home in Game 3, with a fantastic effort to win back the home crowd and even the series. They went up by 13 early, leading 16-30 after quarter one. Defensive pressure was tremendous, a far cry from Game 3, forcing a backcourt violation and only 13 assists by the Lakers. The Spurs went up 54-29 soon, as P.J. Tucker hit a three-pointer, with Brandon Ingram playing wonderfully. Timofey Mosgov was a terror down low, starting in place of Jarrett Allen whose play has been less than desired so far, as 8 points & 9 rebounds were chipped in by the Russian giant. He swatted James, stole the ball at one point also. P.J. Tucker hit a buzzer-beater to end the 3rd quarter also, and Jeremy Lin hit two three-pointers. J.R. Smith had a "no hard feelings" moment, hitting a dagger over LeBron James from way deep. Joe Harris splashed one next, as the Spurs led a towering 68-33 at halftime, eventually going up by forty 84-44 late, leading 62-92 af...

Joe Harris started in place of Taurean Prince, but had a rough showing for it on 4-11 shooting. The Spurs shot a record-low 24% at one point, getting trounced in the second quarter 35-15. The Lakers led 63-34 at halftime, then 93-67 after three quarters. Anthony Davis commanded 31 points & 18 rebounds, with 3 blocks. LeBron James had 21 points, 7 assists. Dwight Howard surprised with 16 points, 16 rebounds. In the loss, Brandon Ingram led San Antonio with 29 points on a 10-18 night with 4 steals and 2 blocks, trying to will the Spurs back into the mix. Dejounte Murray had 16 points, but shot 6-19. LA crushed the Spurs 77-37 on the boards, just showing how badly the Spurs were shooting.

LeBron scored 12 points in the final quarter. LeBron James had a quiet 10 points, until the 4th Quarter when he erupted for 12 more, as the Lakers shot 17-19, stunning the Spurs and eradicating an 11-PT lead to even this series. LA shot 54%, to 40% by San Antone. They won the 3rd Quarter, 24-17 and 38-29 the 4th Quarter. Anthony Davis dominated with 28 points & 15 rebounds. James finished with 22 points, 9 rebounds & 14 assists. Danny Green, Kentavius Caldwell-Pope & JaVale McGee combined for 34 points. Dejounte Murray struggled to lead the Spurs offense, dishing only one assist and scoring 21 points. Brandon Ingram went a cold 7-16 for 15 points. J.R. Smith had 12 points, but went 4-11. Joe Harris kept the Spurs in it with 16 points, shooting well, but Taurean Prince shot 1-10.

The Lakers rallied, but fell short in Game 1. Brandon Ingram got two clutch blocks on LeBron James, spoiling the King's triple-double. A quick flurry by the Lakers nearly buckled the Spurs out of contention early, but they withstood the powerful scoring salvo to come back and seize control with a 52-49 halftime yield. Dejounte Murray blocked Danny Green's 3PT attempt, dishing the ball smartly all game long to P.J. Tucker, J.R. Smith & Avery Bradley for clutch makes from beyond, nearly earning a double-digit lead to begin the fourth quarter, 82-73. The Lakers fired up the comeback effort, but the Spurs clamped down on D highlighted by Mosgov swatting LeBron's jump hook attempt. Despite the loss, the Lakers dominated the glass overall and nearly blew out San Antonio in quarter one, a worry that will definitely linger into Game 2. This game was won by strong performances by Brandon Ingram & Dejounte Murray. The biggest takeaway is San Antonio finally defeating the ...

It was like deja vu for Spurs fans tonight, as they witnessed Brandon Ingram will the Spurs to a victory in Game 5, as he had done in Game 7 v. Utah before spraining his elbow. There were worries about Ingram's return disrupting chemistry, given the promising contributions by Prince & Tucker in his absence. The compromise was Ingram coming off the bench and unleashing the scoring power the Spurs had missed for the first four games of this series v. Los Angeles. Always exciting, Ingram was tasked with guarding Kawhi Leonard for spells. He came into the game after a 13-25 opening by the home team, as it became clear that LA was struggling to make shots. Taurean Prince had made two threes, and Tucker one. Joe Harris got going next, making it 23-40, then 31-50 at halftime. Ingram's first points came off a fierce fast-break throw-down, 50-67 after the third quarter. The Clippers, especially Kawhi Leonard, defied the end to their season and championship aspirations, sur...