In the first game, San Antonio’s defence held strong in the first quarter as they held the Grizzlies to only 13 points to build a nine-point lead.
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The struggle continued for the injury-ravaged Memphis Grizzlies after being defeated for the second time by the San Antonio Spurs, 94-68, in Game 2 of their playoff series on Tuesday at the AT&T Center. Their lack of a go-to scorer and a brilliant fourth quarter by Kawhi Leonard prevented them from getting the win, but for three-quarters, they went blow for blow with the Spurs.
“I thought we were a little disjointed at times, mostly due to their pressure and physical toughness”, Popovich said.
“We fought”, Barnes said. When Memphis trimmed the lead to 83-81 on a Matt Barnes tip-in with 4:38 left, the Spurs used an 8-2 run – capped by a short turnaround by Leonard – to pull away. In that series, the Spurs won the first two games at home by double-digit margins. It will take a bit of luck, but Memphis still technically has a shot to win Game 3.
Grizzlies coach Dave Joerger often talks about playing with force no matter who suits up.
The Boston Celtics are also looking to even their series against the Atlanta Hawks, though they may need another Herculean effort from Isaiah Thomas. “They can run all their stuff, and it’s hard to defend, and he can go get a shot when the shot clock is going down”.
Rest not necessarily good: While San Antonio receives an opportunity to rest some of its players as it preps for the next round, that’s not necessarily what the Spurs want as they look to catch a groove. He’s tied with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar for third in career playoff victories with 154 and can match former teammate Robert Horry with another. Duncan trails Robert Horry (155) and Derek Fisher (161). Memphis simply has nothing for the Spurs without Marc Gasol or Mike Conley.
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Zach Randolph finally shook free of the Spurs noose to score 20 points and grab 11 rebounds. The results were an improvement – just not enough to add any intrigue to the series. You know Andre Drummond is going to get his (except in the fourth quarter, when he is forced to the bench by hack-a-Drummond), but the Pistons have had a balanced attack with Reggie Jackson, Tobias Harris, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Marcus Morris all playing well. On this team, we have a lot of experience.
