The Los Angeles Clippers were dominant in game one, but after two costly turnovers from Blake Griffin and an ageless performance by Tim Duncan, the series is tied at 1-1. It showed us a lot about the Spurs’ resolve, and there’s several things we can make note of after their 111-107 win in game two.
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The Spurs managed to actually make some jump shots this game, and their team field goal percentage of 46.2 percent (close to 10 percent better than game one) went a long way in helping them earn a win. Their free throw shooting also elevated to 73.1 percent (nearly 20 better than the previous game) and hack-a-Jordan actually worked, as DeAndre Jordan only managed to make 4 of his 12 free throws in the fourth quarter which killed L.A.’s momentum.
As is normally the case with the Spurs, it was a complete team effort that enabled them to get their first win of the series. However, Duncan stole the show in the final quarter and overtime, which was finally enough to give Gregg Popovich something to be happy about for once.
Pop made the following comments about Duncan after the game:
"“He was spectacular. He continues to amaze me with the things that he is able to do. He knows he had to stay on the court and he figured out a way to do it. He continued to be aggressive, which is pretty amazing.”"
And if Timmy couldn’t get any classier, he still apologised to his teammates for going 1-of-5 in the fourth. Although, it’s safe to say he was soon forgiven.
So, other than Duncan’s epic departure into the sunset, that (thankfully) never seems to end, here are five things we can take away from game two as this series heads to San Antonio to continue tonight.