Through four playoffs series this postseason, the San Antonio Spurs have now only lost four games total. Sweeps in the opening round and Western Conference Finals mean the Spurs’ only losses have come at the hands of the Golden State Warriors and the Miami Heat.
4 losses.
The Spurs will look to end the playoffs tonight with that same number as they enter a crucial Game 6 in Miami.
There’s nothing easy about closing out a series on the road, but the Spurs have been here before and have a 100 percent success rate in closeout games on the road.
Back on April 28, behind 23 points from Tony Parker, the Spurs ended their first round series with the Lakers in the Staples Center in a 103-82 rout.
After splitting the first four games, the Spurs won Game 5 at Home against the Golden State Warriors and were faced with a closeout opportunity in Oakland. The Spurs took an early lead and never looked back, winning 94-82.
In Game Four of the Western Conference Finals, Tony Parker went off and the Memphis Grizzlies had no answer for his 37-point outburst in Memphis as the Spurs completed the sweep with a 93-86 win.
The Spurs have history on their side when it comes to closing out the NBA Finals on the road as well.
Going back to the 2007 Finals, in their sweep of the Cavs, the Spurs closed in Game Four in Cleveland in a narrow lead, with Manu Ginobili finishing with 27 points and five assists. Even with their first Finals appearance in 1999, the Spurs won in Madsion Square Garden, getting the best of the three games on the road.
While this series has not seen two consecutive wins from one teams, with both teams making key adjustments after losses, they have yet to pass up a chance to finish in a closeout situation. Being up 3-2 also presents an advantage, and after having Manu Ginobili turn back the clock in Game 5, the Spurs have several weapons to use in a big game tonight in Miami.
While James, Wade and Co. will be primed and ready to try to stretch this to seven, as I've said before, the Spurs are as focused as I've seen them and have more than enough motivation, considering they are one win away from a fifth title for Spurs coach Gregg Popovich and Tim Duncan.
Celebrating a championship on the road is nothing new to the Spurs, so it should be no surprise if they are raising the Larry O'Brien trophy in South Beach tonight.
