The San Antonio Spurs and Portland Trail Blazers may have the same record at 50-28 in the tightly contested Western Conference, but they are headed in opposite directions with the playoffs approaching. San Antonio has, and always will be, a force to be reckoned with as long as they have Tim Duncan and Tony Parker, but father time is quickly catching up to them. No team in the league can measure up to the uncomparable pedigree Parker and Duncan have put together in their careers. Portland, meanwhile, has a bright future, with many of their key contributors still improving and learning how to handle success. But, the young Blazers, who are headed to the postseason for the first time since 2003, proved just how much they have grown this season with a 95-83 win over the Spurs, clinching their first win in the Alamo City in 12 tries.
One of the many stumbling blocks for an emerging contender is the ability to beat playoff teams on the road. This is no different when talking about the Blazers, who win under 50% of their games away from home (19-21). In the early going against San Antonio, Portland was struggling and looked overmatched, allowing 33 points in the first quarter and falling behind by as many as 19 in the second. Looking assured of getting another L on the road against a quality team, the Blazers did what they do best: continue to fight and mount a comeback. For the 17th time this season, Portland came back from a double digit deficit to win, doing so by dominating the Spurs 73-42 over the game's final 31minutes. This was no ordinary win for the league's second youngest team; Brandon Roy called it the biggest road victory of his career. In addition, it put the Blazers in a three-way tie for third in the Western Conference and greatly enhanced Portland's chances of hosting a first-round playoff series where they are 31-7 this season.
The uplifting victory completed a 3-1 road trip for the Blazers, the last two coming via double digit comebacks on consecutive nights. With only one game left on the road against the lowly Clippers this season, Nate McMillan's squad can is in a good position to improve its rapidly rising playoff seed at home. Wednesday night's win completed a 3-1 season series win over the Spurs, granting the Blazers the tiebreaker over San Antonio in playoff positioning. Having won seven of their last nine, the Blazers escaped the bottom tier of the playoff race, and are in a legitimate position to have Wednesday's season finale against the Denver Nuggets decide the divison title, and possibly the West's two seed in the playoffs.
On the other end of the spectrum are the Spurs, who have lost four of six to fall into that tie with the Blazers and the Houston Rockets. Once considered a lock to get a top three seed in the playoffs, San Antonio is falling apart, both literally and figuratively. The injuries have been piling up for this veteran team, and it's beginning to take its toll. Tim Duncan has been nursing a sore ankle the entire second half of the season, and Gregg Popovich has treaded conservatively with his playing time. Throughout the stretch run, he has elected to sit Duncan down in the hopes of keeping him fresh for the games that matter. Facing Portland was a game the Spurs badly needed; it marked the first time game San Antonio had since Manu Ginobli was ruled out for the season and was a statement game against a team threatening their throne. Needing a big performance from Duncan, the Big Fundamental wasn't himself, scoring just four points in 24 minutes before Popovich decided he had seen enough.
Down seven in the fourth quarter, Duncan was shut down and benched for good, too ineffective to stay in the game. With no Ginobli nor Duncan, the Spurs had no answers and succumbed to the energized Blazers down the stretch. The loss dropped San Antonio to a pedestrian 18-16 without Ginobli this year, signalling some tough times could be in store for this team once the playoffs roll around. The Spurs managed to make the West Finals with a hobbled Ginobli a year ago, but will have an extremely difficult time replicating that with a less-than-100% Duncan and no Ginobli this year.
Original Story:
http://www.sportsloungeblog.com/2009/...
