San Antonio Spurs Playoffs: R1G2 Spurs Hold Off Los Angeles Clippers in Game 2

29. 107. 77. . 111

The San Antonio Spurs tied up their series with the Los Angeles Clippers at one apiece on Wednesday night, holding off a late comeback in the fourth quarter which sent the game into overtime.

The Spurs found themselves with a 10-point lead in the fourth in this 111-107 victory, but, were unable to convert down the stretch, allowing the Clippers to get back in the game.

Things were not looking so good for San Antonio as they finally relinquished the lead with under a minute left to go in regulation, however, the Spurs defense was able to get a stop, eventually leading to Patty Mills free throws which sent the game into overtime.

From there, it was all San Antonio, who never trailed in the overtime period.

Now that the game is over, let’s take a look at our studs and duds of the game, along with key statistics from San Antonio Spurs playoffs game two.

Studs of the Game

San Antonio Spurs

This award could easily go to Tim Duncan, who had a team-high 28 points along with 11 rebounds. Patty Mills, however, is the more deserving candidate of this award. Mills finished with 18 points on 5-of-9 shooting, all coming after the one minute mark in the third quarter. The Australian point guard was also the player who hit two clutch free throws to send the game into overtime to avoid a Spurs fourth quarter meltdown. Even better, Mills did this with all the pressure on him as Tony Parker left the game with tightness in his Achilles.

Los Angeles Clippers

Blake Griffin was once again a man among boys in game two of this series, recording a triple-double, 29 points, 12 rebounds, 11 assists, however, it is DeAndre Jordan who is deserving of this award. Jordan, with his poor free throw shooting, was the victim of many fouls as the Spurs tried to get him to the line to miss free throws. That ended up backfiring as it slowed the game and stopped San Antonio’s momentum. Jordan also had some impressive numbers in the game, 20 points and 15 rebounds.

Duds of the Game

San Antonio Spurs

Although Tony Parker ended up leaving the game due to tightness in his Achilles, when he was on the floor, he was inefficient. The French point guard just could not get anything going in the game, sputtering to a one point game on 0-of-6 shooting. Parker did collect five assists in his 30 minutes of court time, but, that’s just not enough of a contribution from the former Finals MVP in the playoffs.

Los Angeles Clippers

Matt Barnes had himself a tough night, struggling to put the ball in the basket. Barnes came away with just four points on 1-of-10 shooting. While he was able to collect 10 rebounds, he was unable to convert those into baskets many of times. The futility by Barnes reached its climax late in the fourth quarter when he missed two free throws, collected the rebound, missed a layup, collected that rebound, and missed another layup.

Key Numbers

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11: That’s the number of more free throw attempts the Clippers had in this game. The Spurs decided to use a hack-a-Jordan strategy that ended up slowing down the tempo of the game, resulting in more free throw attempts for Los Angeles. That backfired immensely as not only did it take away the tempo of the game, it also took away San Antonio’s momentum and their lead.

10: That’s the amount of points the Spurs outscored the Clippers in the paint. Tim Duncan was a big reason for that, contributing 28 points. San Antonio’s ability to outscore Los Angeles in the paint was a major reason the Spurs were able to build a 10 point lead in the fourth. Moving forward, San Antonio has to continue to show that kind of aggression on the offensive side of the ball down low. It will really open up the game for the Spurs, especially for their three-point shooters on the wing.

16: That’s the number of offensive rebounds the Clippers had in the game. Nine of those came in the fourth quarter and it’s why Los Angeles was able to keep itself in the game. Had San Antonio boxed out and pulled down some of those boards, there is a strong possibility the Spurs would not have had to play an extra period. San Antonio really needs to concentrate on boxing out for game three or it could end up haunting them.

Next: Highlights: Spurs at Clippers Game Two