Spurs force Game 7 with dominant third quarter against Thunder

San Antonio Spurs didn't shoot all that well

The Spurs started hot with an 8-for-14 three-point shooting performance in the first quarter, the most in a playoff quarter since 1998. For the rest of the game, they were only 7-for-24, finishing the game with a 37 percent performance from deep.

Three-point shooting is variable. Playing defense like they did is more replicable, though it helped that the referees called only 14 fouls on the Spurs and only 35 total — compared to 29 on the Spurs and 51 total in Game 5.

That was the key when it came to limiting MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to 15 points and 6-for-18 shooting. It wasn't just that the Spurs guards checked SGA. It's that they didn't give him trips to the foul line, either on shooting fouls or by fouling SGA off-ball when the team was in the foul bonus.

Can they keep that up on the road in Oklahoma City for Game 7? Guards Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper might not combine for only four personal fouls in their next game, but they've shown that when the Spurs lock in and stay grounded, they're very tough to score on. Perhaps tough enough to unseat a very good defending champion.