This is Spurs basketball. A game where heart, dedication, passion and will to win were all on display as the Spurs turned a one-time 15 point deficit to the Houston Rockets in the third quarter to an 8 point win and the Spurs’ seventh straight over the Rockets. The Spurs ended up winning 92 to 84 in Houston after a dismal first two and a half quarters.
After the Rockets ran up the score and had the Spurs down, Pop lit a torch under the players and inserted a group of reserves to narrow the gap and eventually lead to the win on a 32-9 romp over Houston. Pop took out Tim Duncan and Tony Parker after the Rockets built up a 74-55 lead in the third, and the group he went with ended up going on a 20-1 run and played suffocating defense on Houston to lead to a few three pointers and a breakaway layup.
“Our bench did one heck of a job to get us back in it,” Duncan said. “Pop took us out because we were turning the ball over and not making shots. But our bench came in and they were the difference.”
Tim Duncan and Manu Ginobili were reinserted in the fourth and were able to contribute to the run with a key block of Yao Ming by Duncan and a few layups, including an impressive finger roll in traffic by Manu.
What impressed me the most was that the Spurs never stopped fighting and put on a defensive clinic to get the job done. Duncan also seemed willing to go at Yao Ming on offense and played a solid fourth quarter, but even that wasn’t enough alone.
It was good to see the Spurs bench make a major contribution to get the win, especially Francisco Elson, Beno Udrih, and Robert Horry, who scored 12, 11 and 10 points respectively.
“Robert and Francisco and Beno, off the bench, were the reasons we ended up with this victory,” Popovich said.
The Spurs have Emeka Okafor and the Charlotte Bobcats at home tomorrow night before Ben Wallace and the Bulls come to town Friday night.
-Michael A. De Leon
