San Antonio Spurs 94, Dallas Mavericks 90: Reunited, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili are two too much for the Mavs
AT&T CENTER-For all the weapons the Dallas Mavericks acquired over this year, through the majority of the second half it was the same lineup that ousted the San Antonio Spurs in last season’s playoffs unexpectedly staring down the same point guard they still have no answer for.
The difference? This season Tony Parker brought some help.
“It’s a little bit different, last year I was by myself-Manu was hurt and Timmy was playing on one knee,” Parker said. “This year we have everybody so we have a lot more firepower.”
Reunited in the playoffs with Manu Ginobili (15 points and seven assists), and buttressed by the emergence of second year guard George Hill (17 points), Tony Parker led a suddenly surging San Antonio Spurs backcourt that combined for 55 points with 23 points of his own in the Spurs win.
That the three were able to do so without hitting a single three in seven attempts is a huge departure from last season, when Parker and Tim Duncan were surrounded by one-dimensional spot-up shooters that simply stopped hitting shots.
“We had some good looks, I know Matt Bonner got some good looks and George did as well,” Tim Duncan said. “It’s great that if we weren’t hitting those shots we didn’t just throw it up anyway.
“We got away from the 3-point shooting, got the ball inside and made something happen,” Duncan added. “It was a great adjustment by the team in general.”
Much of that work was through Tim Duncan himself. As much as Tony Parker’s burden has been lessened by the return of Manu Ginobili, Duncan’s game has been buoyed by the return of his second leg, which was hindered by knee troubles last year.
Both the San Antonio Spurs and the Dallas Mavericks have made a conscious decision not to double team the other’s franchise big man and receiving similar results.
Dirk Nowitzki had 35 points on 23 shots, bagging heavily contested jumpers over Antonio McDyess as only Nowitzki can.
“It is amazing the physicality that (Antonio McDyess) is playing with, Dirk has been known to draw fouls but he is making Dirk work for everything he gets,” Duncan said. “Even with all of this, Dirk is a great scorer and still gets 35.”
Duncan, however, was able to cancel out Nowitzki’s production with a 25 point effort while providing a defensive presence on the other end.
For much of the night the San Antonio Spurs played some of their most inspired defense of the year, rotating out to shooters, cutting off drives and forcing the Dallas Mavericks into hurried shots against late shot clock situations they weren’t always able to beat.
“I think it was our focus and our mentality tonight, we know when we’re going against a team like Dallas who is very good offensively, our defense has to be ready,” Tony Parker said. “They hurt us in Game 1. If we can keep playing that defense and play it for 48 minutes we’ll have a chance.”
The Spurs were able to neutralize the Mavericks latest acquisitions-holding Caron Butler to two points, Shawn Marion to seven points and Brendan Haywood to four points and four rebounds-forcing Dallas Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle to use his three guard lineup for almost the entire second half.
The trio of J.J. Barea (14 points, four assists), Jason Terry (17 points) and Jason Kidd (seven points, five assists and seven rebounds) were able to bring the Mavericks back into the game, even gaining a brief advantage with Manu Ginobili in the locker room with a broken nose.
“It was a coach’s decision (not playing Butler in the second half). I was going with a group that was going good, we needed penetration and that was it,” Carlisle said. “(Barea) made good things happen, he was very active and helped us when he was out there.”
Much of the run came through a mixture of the Mavericks zone defensive schemes and the absence of Manu Ginobili, who after fouling Dirk Nowitzki with his face, left to the locker room in a bloody mess with a diagnosed nasal fracture.
Given what he’s been through the past two playoffs, the broken nose wasn’t enough to deter Manu Ginobili, who returned in the fourth quarter to score 11 of his 15 points, weaving through the defense with no regard for his nose.
“This is a guy who beats up bats, he does all kinds of things out there,” Richard Jefferson said. “When he came back we were wondering what took him so long. Then he stepped right in and got his game going again.”
All of this is a much welcome relief for Parker, who may not have the same role but is proving to be the same point guard who ran circles around the Mavericks defense last year.
Adjusting to his new role as Manu jr., Tony Parker scored nine points in the fourth quarter and burying the Mavericks with two late jumpers.
“Now I’m 100 percent, my hip, my plantar fasciitis, everything was gone when I cam back,” Parker said. “Right now I just play free, play my game and be aggressive.”
Finally 100 percent, the San Antonio Spurs can finally just play free, play their game and be aggressive. They now do so up 2-1 over the Mavericks.
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