Spurs Trounce Jazz, Grizzlies down Clippers in NBA
The San Antonio Spurs pummeled the Utah Jazz 114-83 on Wednesday to take a 2-0 lead in their NBA Western Conference first-round playoff series.
Tony Parker scored 18 points and handed out nine assists for the Spurs, who are the top seeds in the West and whose coach, Gregg Popovich, accepted his NBA Coach of the Year award before the contest.
After the Spurs extended their series lead with ease, the Memphis Grizzlies clawed back in their best-of-seven showdown against the Los Angeles Clippers, triumphing 105-98 to knot the series at one game apiece.
The Grizzlies bounced back after a demoralizing game one defeat on Sunday, in which the Clippers roared back to erase a 27-point second-half deficit to win by one point.
The Grizzlies made sure there was no such drama this time, not letting their lead slip below four points in the final period.
Chris Paul's four-point play, on a foul as he connected from three-point range, pulled Los Angeles within 83-79.
The Grizzlies answered, however, by scoring eight straight.
Paul scored 29 points and Blake Griffin added 22 for the Clippers, who host game three on Saturday.
In San Antonio, the Spurs took charge from the tip-off, opening the game with a 10-2 scoring run.
After Al Jefferson scored with a layup, San Antonio answered with seven straight points.
A 22-2 scoring run in the second quarter saw the Spurs lead 53-28 at halftime, and they had no trouble preserving the lead in the second half.
San Antonio led by as many as 36 after Boris Diaw drove for a layup late in the third and they took an 87-53 lead into the final period.
"I thought we moved the ball great and our shooters were making shots," Parker said. "Defensively, I thought we did a good job controlling the boards."
Tim Duncan added 12 points and 13 rebounds and Kawhi Leonard chipped in 17 points for San Antonio, who will try to maintain the momentum when the best-of-seven series shifts to Salt Lake City for game three on Saturday.
"We have been great at home and we need to continue that," Jazz head coach Tyrone Corbin said.
Josh Howard and Jefferson scored 10 points each to pace Utah, who shot just 34.4 percent. The Jazz made just one of six from three-point range.
On Thursday, the reigning NBA champion Dallas Mavericks will try to gain a toe-hold against the Oklahoma City Thunder when they host game three of their Western conference series, after losing the first two games in Oklahoma to trail 0-2.
"Game three is game seven for us," the Mavericks' Jason Terry said Wednesday. "We're coming out with a sense of urgency."
Source: Agence France Presse
| Copyright © 2012 Naharnet.com. All Rights Reserved. | https://naharnet.com/stories/en/38993 |