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The San Antonio Spurs look to keep their foot to the floor in Game 2 of the first-round NBA playoffs against the Memphis Grizzlies, after a thrashing last time out. Join The Roar for live scores from 11:30am (AEST).
After an absolute thumping in Game 1, where the Spurs won by a massive 32 points, the Grizzlies need a huge change of fortune to even come close in the second match of the series, again played at the AT&T Center.
Statistically, San Antonio is the hardest place to play in the NBA, with a record of 40 wins and 1 loss at the venue after the regular season.
What may worry the Grizzlies even more than the margin, and all the other teams who stand in San Antonio’s way, is that they were able to rest their stars during the final quarter of action.
No Spurs player was on the court for more than half an hour, with Tony Parker and Tim Duncan only playing 21 and 22 minutes respectively.
While Kawhi Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge dominated the game, scoring 20 and 17 points, Duncan had 11 rebounds and led the defensive effort – as he always seems to.
The Grizzlies simply had no answers to get around the defence, with Vince Carter high scoring on 16 points. It seemed that nearly every play was shut down to some extent, and they resorted to throwing up bad shots whenever they got even an inch of space.
The stats show us that key man Zach Randolph finished the game with just six points, on three of 13 shooting, with only five rebounds.
As a team, Memphis shot the ball at under 40 per cent, and had 16 turnovers. It doesn’t matter who you are, or who you are playing, those numbers are not indicative of a team going to win.
The Spurs, of course, haven’t lost a game against the Grizzlies all season, only adding to the already massive odds stacked against Memphis. Three out of the four games were by a margin of double figures as well, meaning not only have they lost, but haven’t even been able to compete.
If the Grizzlies are going to give this game a shake, it is again up to Randolph to even the effect of Duncan’s communication in the paint.
Prediction
It’s incredibly difficult to see the Grizzlies being able to bounce back or score enough points against the Spurs’ lockdown defence.
Spurs by 17.
Be sure to join The Roar for live scores of this match from 11:30am (AEST) and don’t forget to add your own comments in the section below.
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