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ekansekans's blog: "df"

created on 10/29/2012  |  http://fubar.com/df/b351055

(Sports Network) - Something has to give on tonight when the sizzling San Antonio Spurs visit the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals. You can see all the action on TSN beginning at 9pm et/6pm pt. The Spurs, of course, became just the fourth team in NBA history to win 20 straight games and are a perfect 10-0 in this postseason after taking the first two games of this set in the Alamo City. The Thunder, meanwhile, have yet to lose on their home floor in the playoffs and are hoping a change in scenery can get them back in the series. "Weve been a resilient group that bounces back," Thunder star Kevin Durant said. "Tough to go down 0-2. We get an opportunity to go home and play in front of our home crowd and try to get Game 3. So weve got to take it a game at a time, a possession at a time. Well be all right." San Antonio bent, but never broke on Tuesday in Game 2. After seeing a 22-point lead nearly disappear, the Spurs held on for their 20th consecutive win behind Tony Parkers brilliant night. The electrifying point guard finished 16-of-21 from the floor and had 34 points as San Antonio survived in a 120-111 victory. "It was just one of those nights," Parker said. "I felt in a good rhythm early on. I was making my outside shots and just trying to be aggressive." Manu Ginobili added 20 points, Kawhi Leonard scored 18 with 10 rebounds and Tim Duncan had 11 points and 12 boards in the win as the Spurs overcame 88 combined points from Thunder stars Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden. San Antonios current 20-game run is the longest extended into the playoffs in NBA history, breaking the 19-game streak by the 2001 Lakers. "Its great and it is a great run, but we are only worried about the next two wins in this series," Duncan said. "That is all that matters at this point and if that makes it 22 in a row, that would be great. These next two wins are the most important things to us right now." Spurs coach Gregg Popovich -- who screamed at his team during Game 1 that he wanted "some nasty" as they labored to come back from a nine-point deficit -- watched a 22-point lead in the third quarter melt down to six midway through the fourth on Tuesday. The NBA Coach of the Year said his team didnt let up. "I thought we lost a little mojo," said Popovich. "(But) thats how things happen. Its the NBA. Teams dont just die; they come back on you." Durant had 31 points, Harden scored 12 of his 30 in the fourth quarter and Westbrook added 27 points, including 11 in the final frame when the Thunder outscored the Spurs 35-28. "We fought back like we always do," said Westbrook. "We just didnt win. We have to make sure we come out in Game 3 with a sense of urgency." Parker lined up all alone in the right corner for a three-pointer to give the Spurs a 20-point lead with 5:15 left in the third quarter, and it looked like the rout was on. San Antonio pushed its lead to 22 on the next trip down the court, but Durant scored six points in an 8-0 Thunder run to trim the margin to 80-66. It stayed between 14 and 18 points for the rest of the third quarter before the Thunder began chipping away. They were never closer in the second half than when Westbrook made a pair of foul shots to cut San Antonios lead to 99-93 with 5:40 remaining. Duncan hit a couple of free throws at the other end and Parkers layup pushed the lead to 10. The dagger didnt come until later, when Ginobili knocked down a three for a 115-105 lead with just 88 seconds left. The Spurs ended 11-of-26 on threes and shot better than 55 percent overall. "I like the way our guys fought," said Thunder coach Scott Brooks, whose team shot 42 percent for the game but nearly 53 percent in the fourth quarter. "We just couldnt get over the hump. We dug ourselves a deep hole." Brooks believes that the Thunder got back into Game 2 by amping up the physicality and hopes that continues. "Were a physical team. We have to play that way," Brooks said Wednesday. "If we play free-flowing basketball, we can beat some teams but were not at our best if were not being physical on the defensive end." Popovich on the other hand is secure in the knowledge that his team hasnt lost since April 11 to the Lakers and that only 14 teams in NBA history have come back from an 0-2 deficit to win a seven-game series. The Spurs went 2-1 against the Thunder during the lockout-shortened regular season. Oklahoma City won the first meeting, 108-96 on Jan. 8 at Chesapeake Energy Arena, but the Spurs came back to take the season series with a 107-96 victory Feb. 4 at the AT&T Center and a 114-105 road win March 16. In the postseason, this rivalry dates back to 1982 when the Thunder were known as the Seattle SuperSonics. The Spurs topped Seattle three times in the playoffs, 82, 2002 and 2005. This is the first time the franchises have met since the Sonics relocated to OKC in 2008. Game 4 of the series is Saturday in Oklahoma City. Cheap Jerseys . The 32-year-old Shoppach is hitting .250 with five homers, 12 doubles and 17 RBIs in 48 games this year. He was signed by Boston as a free agent last December after spending the previous two season with Tampa Bay. Cheap Jerseys From China . -- Chicago Bears running back Matt Forte expects to start Sunday against the Bears despite an ankle injury suffered last week. http://www.dancewithmeusa.com/hot.html . 4 and make a ruling shortly after. Such timing potentially could be disruptive for the Saints, who could lose starting defensive end Will Smith and linebacker Jonathan Vilma while trying to claw back into playoff contention. The Portland Trail Blazers werent bluffing about Nicolas Batum after all. The Blazers matched Minnesotas four-year offer sheet worth more than $45 million for the restricted free agent, keeping the 23-year-old swingman in Portland just like GM Neil Olshey said they would all along. Olshey made the announcement on Wednesday in Las Vegas, where the Blazers were participating in the NBAs summer league. He said that some of the incentives in Minnesotas offer sheet, which would have pushed the deal past $50 million, were denied by the league. "The decision was made a long time ago," Olshey told reporters in Las Vegas. "We were never not going to have Nicolas back. We did investigate certain things with Minnesota as a due diligence deal. We wanted to make sure we explored every option to improve our basketball team, but there was never a situation where there was a commensurate package offered back that was attractive enough to let Nicolas go." Portlands move to keep Batum ended a long and occasionally bitter negotiation between the Blazers and the Timberwolves, who were convinced the French player was the missing piece in a young core that already has Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio. "We are disappointed that Nicolas Batum will not be on our team and wish him the best in the future," Minnesota general manager David Kahn said. "However, we were prepared for the possibility of this outcome and will move forward with our other plans." Batum left the French national team, which is preparing for the Olympics, to take a physical in Portland scheduled for Thursday. Blazers owner Paul Allen chimed in on Twitter: "Welcome back Nic! And good luck in the Olympics." Kahn had been interested in Batum for several years and was aggressive when free agency opened at the start of this month. The Wolves hosted Batum in the first week of July and agreed to terms on an offer sheet on July 6, with Batums agent saying his client very much preferred Minnesota over staying in Portland. The Wolves were hoping that the size of the deal coupled with Batums stated desire to play under Wolves coach Rick Adelman and alongside Love and Rubio would be enough to convince the Blazers to agree to a sign-and-trade to bring the versatile swingman to Minnesota. The two teams spent a week and a half in negotiations, but never could find common ground. Unwilling to part with Derrick Williams and a bevy of draft picks, the Wolves searched far and wide to add a third team to the mix that would have added some attractive pieces for the Blazers to pull the triggeer.ddddddddddddThe Wolves offered multiple first-round draft picks and Bulls shooter Kyle Korver in one version of the deal, but that was rejected and Korver instead was traded to Atlanta. Even when it became apparent that a sign-and-trade wasnt going to happen, the Wolves pressed on. Owner Glen Taylor said last week that they planned "to call their bluff" and file the offer sheet with the league to see if Olshey was serious about matching any offer. After making a few moves to create the necessary cap room, the Wolves submitted the offer sheet to the league on Sunday, giving the Blazers three days to match. While he enjoys living in Portland and playing in front of the Blazers passionate fans, Batums agent claimed that his client grew disenchanted with the way he was used by former coach Nate McMillan. Batum was looking for more freedom to go to the rim on offence, and more of an opportunity to display his athleticism, which is why he was hoping to come to Minnesota and play in Adelmans more wide-open offence. Batum, who is entering his fifth season and averaged 13.9 points and 4.6 rebounds last year, and the Blazers also hit a road block in January, when Portland declined to extend a long-term contract. The Blazers told Batum all along that they wanted to bring him back, but also wanted the cap flexibility to make other moves. After missing out on centre Roy Hibbert when their max offer was matched by Indiana, the Blazers appear to be moving forward with Batum, big man LaMarcus Aldridge, shooting guard Wes Matthews and rookie point guard Damian Lillard as they try to retool in the powerful Western Conference. Olshey said he has been in constant contact with Batum, talking almost every day through the process and wasnt concerned about Batums stated desire to play in Minnesota. "Hes always expressed a desire to come back to Portland," Olshey said. "His agent did what he needed to do, which is get him the best possible deal for his client. He feels like he did that. Nicolas got his deal, we got our player back and well move on." In some ways, losing out on Batum will still help the Wolves. They have more than $14 million in cap room now, and are expected to announce agreements with former Blazers guard Brandon Roy and Russian guard Alexey Shved in the coming days. Minnesota also is interested in Celtics restricted free agent Greg Stiemsma, Lakers power forward Jordan Hill and is expected to pursue Rockets free agent Courtney Lee and Bulls veteran Ronnie Brewer as contingency plans for Batum. ' ' ' 

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