Spurs Dig In, Win Again
Parker, Ginobili and Duncan Key San Antonio's 2-0 Lead: Spurs 103, Cavaliers 92

By Ivan Carter
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, June 11, 2007

SAN ANTONIO, June 10 -- When the San Antonio Spurs need a layup, they can spread the floor, give the ball to Tony Parker and tell him to attack the basket. When they need a high-percentage shot in the post, they can dump the ball into Tim Duncan and watch him go to work.

And when they need a clutch three-pointer, they can call Manu Ginobili's number and count on him to make one.

The talents and playmaking of those three players, along with a roster that is dotted with veterans who carry plenty of big-game experience, is the fundamental difference between the Spurs and Cleveland Cavaliers, which again was evident following the Spurs' 103-92 win in Game 2 of the NBA Finals at AT&T Center on Sunday night.

Parker, Duncan and Ginobili combined for 78 points, and Ginobili put an end to a spirited Cleveland comeback with a four-point play in the final minutes as the Spurs took a 2-0 series lead.

"I don't know what it is but in these playoffs, with Manu coming off the bench, we've found a way for all three of us to click at the same time," said Parker, who followed up his 27-point, seven-assist effort in Game 1 to score 30 points on 13-of-20 shooting Sunday night. "I just think we're doing a better job of taking turns, and we're moving the ball great and just making shots."

Game 3 is Tuesday night in Cleveland, where the Cavaliers bounced back from an 0-2 deficit in the Eastern Conference finals to win Games 3 and 4 before closing out the Detroit Pistons in six games.

Pulling off a similar comeback against the Spurs, who are going for their fourth NBA championship since 1999, will require major adjustments at both ends of the court. The Cavaliers can, however, take confidence from a 22-4 fourth-quarter run on Sunday that nearly erased a 29-point deficit.

After shooting 35.6 percent through the first three quarters, the Cavaliers outscored the Spurs 30-14 in the fourth. LeBron James scored eight of his 25 points in the period, reserve Damon Jones made a pair of three-pointers and Daniel Gibson scored nine of his 15 points.

A Gibson layup over Duncan trimmed the deficit to eight with 3 minutes 21 seconds remaining, but that's when the Spurs turned to their key players.

Parker made a 19-foot jumper and then a spectacular spinning layup, Duncan scored on a layup and Ginobili, who finished with 25 points and six rebounds, made the biggest play of the game by making a three-pointer while drawing a foul on Gibson at the 2:24 mark.

Ginobili, who was 11 of 11 from the free throw line, completed a rare four-point play with a free throw and the Cavaliers didn't recover. The Spurs also received a boost from veteran reserve forward Robert Horry, who finished with nine rebounds and five blocks in just under 27 minutes.

"Robert was the star for us tonight," Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich said. "I know we spend a lot of time talking about Tim, Tony and Manu. But when you have a guy like that come off the bench and do what Robert did, it's really special."

Still, James believes that Sunday's comeback will give his team something to build on as the series heads to Cleveland's Quicken Loans Arena.

"We're definitely still confident," James said. "We've been down 0-2 . . . before, so we have to find a way to match the intensity we had in the fourth quarter for the entire game and we'll be fine."

To win a game, the Cavaliers have to find a way to slow down Parker, who has been the best player on the court. In Game 1, Parker did most of his damage with drives to the basket. So the Cavaliers entered Sunday night with a strategy of backing off and inviting him to take jump shots.

That strategy didn't work.

Parker either drove his way around Larry Hughes, Gibson or veteran Eric Snow anyway or pulled up to make jump shots. But the Spurs weren't only about Parker. They moved the ball crisply and as a result, eight players scored in the first half as their lead swelled to 28 points.

James picked up his second foul only three minutes into the game, then watched from the bench as the Cavaliers made only seven of 23 first quarter shots en route to falling behind 28-17.

James returned at the start of the second quarter but missed jumpers on Cleveland's first two possessions and was called for traveling on the third. By the time James airballed a free throw attempt at the 8:43 mark of the second quarter, the Spurs led by 19 and were well in control.

"We can play better," James said. "We can play harder. It shows, the difference between the first three quarters and the fourth quarter. We have to find a way to pick up our intensity and carry on what happened in the fourth quarter into the rest of the game."