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 With All-Star point guard Tony Parker scoring a team-high 22
points and Danny Green pouring in a dazzling array of seven
three-pointers, the Spurs sizzled on their home court to take a
commanding 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Veteran forward Tim Duncan contributed 14 points and 12 rebounds
while Manu Ginobili and Boris Diaw tallied 11 points apiece off the
bench as San Antonio had five players in double-figures.
The Spurs, aiming for a return to the NBA Finals, outshot their
opponents by 50 percent to 39 from the field.
"In the second quarter, we moved the ball much better, got to our
shooters," Duncan, a 14-time All-Star who has won four NBA
championship titles with the Spurs, told reporters.
"Danny was obviously hot tonight and TP (Parker) was great just
attacking, going straight by people."
Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook led the Thunder with 15 points
each but, for the second straight game, they sorely missed the
shot-blocking skills of forward Serge Ibaka, who is out for the rest
of the playoffs with a calf injury.
League MVP Durant and dynamic guard Westbrook, Oklahoma City's
one-two knockout punch, were restricted to a combined 13-for-40 from
the field, and Duncan was delighted.
"Work, work for everything," Duncan said of San Antonio's strategy
against the usually high-scoring duo. "Keep them off the free throw
line, make their shots as tough as possible.
"Those guys are great scorers, we know that, but we want to make
them work for everything they get."
MORE PHYSICAL
The Thunder, adopting a more physical approach than in Monday's Game
One which they lost 122-105, made a fast start and withstood a
sizzling 12-2 run by the Spurs to lead 26-24 after the first
quarter.
However, San Antonio then turned on the style to take control as
Green poured in three three-pointers and Ginobili added one of his
own from beyond the arc to put the home team 58-44 up at halftime.
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Roared on by increasingly vocal fans, the Spurs pulled further ahead
with a stunning display of shooting from the field, a driving layup
by Kawhi Leonard giving them a 29-point advantage before they ended
the third quarter leading 91-62. There was no way back from there for Oklahoma City as the San
Antonio bench players maintained control.
"I hope our locker doesn't feel good," Thunder coach Scott Brooks
said. "You shouldn't feel good. We got our butts kicked, but we have
a good opportunity to come back and win Game Three."
The series shifts to Oklahoma City where Game Three will be played
on Sunday.
Two years ago, the Spurs took a commanding 2-0 lead in the Western
Conference finals before losing to the Thunder in six games, and
that remains a bitter memory for Duncan and his team mates.
"We will remind everybody of that situation," said Duncan. "We go
into Oklahoma for that first game with the focus that we will need
to win two games there."
(Reporting by Mark Lamport-Stokes in Los Angeles; Editing by Ian
Ransom/Patrick Johnston)
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