Saturday, May 20, 2006

Game 6: Spurs 91, Mavs 86 (3-3)

In the words of the Musers drop: I'm so scared, baby.

Let’s play a quick game of connect the dots as we look back at another memorable contest in the series that we shall not soon forget:

- The Mavericks had major trouble scoring last night at very crucial moments.
- Jason Terry, one of the best scorers on the team got himself suspended.
- The Mavericks lost.
- Jason Terry is to blame more than any member of that team (Even Devin).

Sorry, but that is the way I see it. I know you are supposed to be able to go on without a player, and for purposes of injury, I agree. Even for wrongful prosecution, I agree. But for getting yourself suspended, everyone can keep as brave a face as they want. The fact is that Jason Terry may have cost his team a chance of a lifetime based on 1 moment of losing his head.

But, redemption has a funny way of offering itself to those who need it most.

Game 7 Monday is Jason’s chance. To save his reputation around these parts, I suggest he play pretty well. I am sure he knows this. I would imagine it was tough to be him on his couch as Devin Harris played like he was scared out of his mind.

The game itself had many talking points. But to cut to the chase, the Spurs responded as you would expect a champion to respond. That “other level” that they have been talking about finally made an appearance when the Mavericks needed to find a hoop. Dallas took poor shots and had no chance at the glass. The Spurs are feeling great right now because they have pulled even in a race that ends on Monday night.

And now, exclusive Bob’s Blog Quick Hits from Game 6:

• Who thought that you could hold Tony Parker to 3-15 and Tim Duncan would finally play a reasonably average game (8-21 from the field) and you would not beat them on your home court? Well, the unstoppable offenses on both sides through 5 games were not unstoppable in Game 6. With the exception of Dirk on one end and Manu on the other, this game featured a lot of offense that did not look very pretty. This is the kind of game that everyone expected before the series started and neither team would be able to stop the other.

• Since we mentioned Dirk, I really believe he has found a new level. He is on a mission. His emotions have never been higher as a leader and he is trying to pull everyone with him. I cannot believe how good he was last night, and if you want to rip him for a bad shot at the end, I can agree with you until you stop for a second and ask who he was going to go to Not saying it was a good choice, but if ever a dude seemed like he was out there by himself, it was in the final minutes of last night as Stackhouse has missed everything he has shot since the first quarter, Devin Harris needs to see Dr Melfi, and Jason Terry was on his couch. Sue him for taking one bad shot In a monster performance.

• I believe this is where generic sports commentator says this: “You know, as close and competitive as this series has been, there is no other way it should end than in a Game 7”. Phooey. But, get ready to embrace that idea.

• 85-84, Spurs. 2:00 to play, and the Mavericks get another key stop. Devin Harris takes the ball in front of Avery Johnson and hits the gas down the sideline. By the time he gets past mid-court, Bennett Salvatore decides that this is a good time for him to take the game over and call Harris for a mysterious offensive foul on Bruce Bowen. Bowen sold it well, and Salvatore bit, so as the Mavericks are going for the lead, they get stopped. And not by the Spurs. So much for the home cooking that the first 5 games seemed to offer.

• Earlier in the series I wondered what planet Manu Ginobili was on and why he wasn’t a factor in the series. I would like to take that back. You might be able to start making cases for him for series MVP if there was such an award. That dude has likely silenced me for the rest of his career. What an awesome player. But, seriously; where was he in Game 1 and Game 2?

• You might have expected Marquis Daniels and Devin Harris to play like spares last night. We have all rushed Devin to superstar status in about 10 days, so you had to see one of these games coming. But Jerry Stackhouse? He starts 3-3 and finishes 1-12. Ouch. C’mon, brother. You aren’t helping that reputation of yours that says you are better when the game is not on the line.

• Greg Popovich is a genius. I am amazed at how good a coach he is.

• Don’t tell me that Michael Finley didn’t win that battle last night. I wanted to see him fail, too, but if ever a guy stuck it up the rear end of 20,000 people, Ol’ Fin-dog did just that last night. I am pretty sure he dedicated that to Mark Cuban.

• 84% of home teams win Game 7. The Spurs are home Monday.

• 16% of road teams win Game 7. The Mavericks are on the road Monday.

• Mavericks are 2-1 in Game 7’s all-time. Lost to the Lakers in ’88 on the road, beat Portland and Sacramento at home in ’03.

• If you thought Spurs fans were insufferable before this series, just wait until they get done with this comeback. If they are successful, you may not want to see your Spurs buddy on Tuesday. This is where rivalries are made.

• Can you imagine the pressure on Jason Terry? I have called him “nails” in this series. I guess we are about to find out.

• Beat SA, please?

26 comments:

Anonymous said...

See what ya'll get when you suspend me from blogging!!!!

Now that I'm back, let's win this Mother F-er Monday and be done.

I'll have all my lucky stuff ready. Old Milwaukee, Marlboro Lights, 2 and 4 year old kids in diapers playing on the floor with matches (safety matches of course) and just to make sure we win......reheated frozen burrito with Kroger store brand hot sauce.

My only saving grace is knowing that as crazy as this is making me Bob has got to be going NUTS worrying about 3 months of Rangers talk.

Anonymous said...

One more thing....Buzz Light-Year and Spiderman go in the Front!!!

For those of you who get that comment, hug'em while you got 'em.

Anonymous said...

Bob, about the Harris call,just remember what you said about bad calls all week. It sucks when the shoe is on the other foot doesn't it. I didn't hear anybody complaining when the Mavs shot 50 FT's.

Sturminator said...

Anon-

First, sign up and get a name, so we can all get to know you.

Second, if you think I was saying the call cost the Mavericks the game, you may need to reread it. I simply was pointing out a brutal call. My friends in San Antonio were ignoring their missed free throws, turnovers, and missed shots and simply blaming the refs for the loss. If you cannot see the difference, than perhaps this is all too complex for you.

Bad call exist. I just don't ignore team errors so that I may blame the zebras.

Bob

Anonymous said...

Team FG: 38.6%

horrible.

When you are up 6, or 7 on the defending champs, you must learn how to put it away. The mavs had several chances to go up 8, 10 and couldn't do it. The missed shots are still ringing in my ears.

Anonymous said...

Nice line about Dr. Melfi.

Bottom line is nobody came to play except Dirk and the crowd seemed flat.

Stack HAD to step up as the veteran to be the 2nd scoring threat.

Bottom line is Mavs had their chances. Parker was a dud last night and they let a Nick Van Exel led backcourt keep them in it. They should have been abusing him.

Until this year this has been a 'big brother-little brother rivalry.' The little brother wanted to win badly, but the big brother knew he could win at any time.

Now the teams are equal and there is respect on both sides. But if the Spurs pull this off, the psychological edge will be back in place.

Anonymous said...

It is awfully funny though now that the shoe is indeed on the other foot, suddenly it's now the Mavs fans whining heavily about the officiating. When this series was at 3-1, I heard a lot of bashing of Spurs fan saying how insufferable and whiney they were. It's just awfully ironic now that the calls are suddenly going the other way, now it's Mavs fan that is being equally insufferable and whiney. All you had to do was listen to Ben and Skin's post-game show last night to hear that loud and clear.

If the Spurs do end up coming back from the dead and winning this thing on Monday, Spurs fan will have every reason to gloat, due to the bashing they were taking through the first 4 games of this series from people like you Bob. Sorry, just calling it like it is. Go back and read your Tuesday blog if you need some evidence. See ya Monday...

Anonymous said...

as has been pointed out, the problem last night was that no one showed up except dirk...and he simply cant win it by himself no matter how good he is.

im tired of hearing about fouls being called or not called. both teams have gotten the shaft at some point in this series.

and finley looks like a man on a mission out there!

Anonymous said...

Bob (not Sturm, the Spurs honk), you mean you weren't screaming and yelling at your TV during the first half when Salvatore took over the game and rung up three fouls each on Duncan, Bowen, and Ginobili? And some of those calls sucked, too. Especially Duncan's third where he didn't even touch Dirk and they called a foul.

Anonymous said...

Mavs are actually 3-0 in game 7s in the Dirk era. Portland and Sacramento at home in ’03 and Houston last year.

Anonymous said...

I feel like my girlfriend dumped me and my dog died last night. This is is the pits, man.

Anonymous said...

Here's the difference, Spurs fans.

Almnost universally, Spurs fans blamed the refs for their losses in Game 3 and 4.

Nevermind they gave up 100 points in each contest. It was the refs fault.

Bob's simply criticizing one single call at a crucial point in the contestwhile mixing in about 8 or 9 other points that also contributed to the outcome of the game.

Point being, learn how to f***ing read. Do they not teach that down in South Texas?

Anonymous said...

Howard 7/17
Harris 3/14
Stackhouse 4/15
Daniels 3/7
Van Horn 3/7
Griffin 0/1

Its sad that in a game that was there for the taking, no one except dirk and the bigs decided to show up. I thought Diop and Damp played pretty well last night. Maybe they just looked good cause Duncan wasn't making shots, but it looked like they were giving him anything and i like that.

I found myself at the half thinking that if Terry was in there, someone who could hit an open jumper, we might have been up 20.

I didn't think the Spurs played great D all game, we got a lot of open shots, just missed us. We played pretty good D, just friggin Ginobili was hitting everything he threw at the rim.

Just one of those nights I suppose.

Did anyone else notice ESPN playing Bob's favorite song "Learning to Fly" during the halftime of the Pistons-Cavs game?

Anonymous said...

Hey Bob, can we talk about this "very clear rule" the NBA has about throwing a punch in a game?

"M. PUNCHING, FIGHTING AND ELBOW FOULS


Violent acts of any nature on the court will not be tolerated. Players involved in altercations will be ejected, fined and/or suspended. "


I suggest everybody read that again.

Ejected, fined, AND/OR suspended.


So where is everybody coming up with this "throw a punch and you're suspended automatically" business?

Anonymous said...

What's done is done. And JET's the one who put himself at the mercy of Stu Jackson.

Anonymous said...

EVERYONE ID LOVING DIRK AND I AM TO ON THE OFFENSIVE SIDE. BUT AS FAR AS DEFENSE, HE PLAIN OUT SUCKS. I WATCHED HIM 4 TIMES LET GUYS GET UNCONTESTED BUCKETS. HE JUST LETS PEOPLE DO WHAT THEY WANT. THE ONLY FOUL HE HAD LAST NIGHT WAS WHEN HE HAD TO FOUL, SO THEY COULD SHOOT FREE THROWS. HOW DO YOU PLAY 40 PLUS AND ONLY HAVE FOUL. AND ITS NOT ONLY GAME SIX, LOOK AT ALL HIS FOULS IN GAMES 1 -6, HE PLAYS NO D.

Anonymous said...

I FIGURED SINCE I RAN MY MOUTH, I SHOULD HAVE FACTS TO BACK IT UP. GAME 1, HE HAD 2 FOULS, GAME 2=4 FOULS, GAME 3 =2 FOULS= GAME 4 AND 5=FIVE FOULS AND OF COURSE GAME SIX=1 FOUL. THAT 1 SHOULD NOT EVEN COUNT. HE FOULED TO PUT THEM TO THE LINE.DAMN, DIRK WHAT ARE U SAVING THE FOULS FOR, NEXT SERIES. WHEN THE SPURS DRIVE TO THE BASKET, PUT A HARD FOUL ON THEM, DAMN. NEXT TIME, JUST BEND DOWN AND LET MIKE DUNK FROM YOUR BACK. IM SURE BOB YOU WILL NOT AGREE WITH ME, BUT FACTS ARE FACTS. WHEN WE DRIVE TO THE RIM, AT LEAST DUNCAN WILL PUT A FOUL ON YOU AND WARN YOU ABOUT DRIVING, WHILE DIRK WILL JUST GET OUT THE WAY. OPEN YOUR EYES DIRK.
DUCK

Anonymous said...

'Anon',

David Stern was VERY clear on several radio shows at the beginning of the playoffs - throw a punch and you'll get suspended.

I thinks why many in the Mavs organization argued the true impact or cause of the punch (i.e., it was just a natural reaction), but did not argue the actual suspension if it was a punch.

Anonymous said...

Having supressed my many emotions from this series, I can't seem to hold them in any longer...

The bad thing about a series this close, and this great, is that it allows for over analyzation and endless searching for the one thing that caused the game...gives me crazy head.

That being said, allow me to join in the madness.

I'm so sick of the Michael Finley was so wronged, and such a class act... how could us evil fans, possibly boo his fragile basketball player soul. Couple things here: yes it is true that the Mavs let him go, the writting was clearly on the wall. The reason of course was valid, he was clearly vocal that he was not comfortable at a reduced role, and his diminishing talent did not fit this team well. He turned into a jump shooter, with bad handles that was unable to create his own shot. What does he do, he signs with a team that has been hated in these parts for sometime and accepts...wait for it...a reduced role. Now in these playoffs he has played inspired b-ball, looked athletic, created his own shot numerous times and repeatedly drove to the hole. Something I might add, us loyal fans have begged him to do since '03(western conf. finals) which he was unable, and now seems unwilling to do, until of course he dawned the silver and black.

Bringing me to point two: HE IS A SPUR!!! Miami gladly would have had him, Cleveland would have been perfect for him, even Detriot would have been doo-able. All of which would have provided him the elusive "chance at a championship". Therefore I say boo you...boo you mister player crotch target man!!!

Finally, this series has been magical with a touh of mystical I might add. It all comes down to monday. To those overconfident Spurs fans with all the "momentum", in the immortal words of the great Mr.Wolf(Pulp Fiction)..."lets not start sucking each others dick's just yet".

P.S.- Jet better be Jet on monday.Fun playoff basketball stat that means nothing, but sounds important.

84% of home teams win game seven.
Only seven teams in the history of nba have come back from 3-1 deficit.
Sounds to me we might just have to play the game...

Anonymous said...

Brandon, does your posting a F bomb make you sound cool or smart? I guess anything written can be taken how the reader interprets it. Does that make me stupid or you smarter than me? In a Spurs fan frame of mind I thought he was "whining" like you Mavs fan like to say. Any oficiating reference a Spurs fan makes it's whining to a Mavs fan. Do you interpret them wrong? Sorry, I'm just a stupid south texan. I sure didn't mean to bother your genius!

Anonymous said...

I've noticed a trend.

1. Spurs fan posts (Anonymous of course because after Tuesday they will never post again here so why get a username?)

2. Mavs fans posts response by calling them names or insulting their intelligence.

Anonymous said...

Just type your name with the keyboard, Spurs fans. There is not a background check for just inserting your name in the "other" category. And no I'm not a Mavs fan. I could care less who wins at this stupid sport, but I'm sick of of reading "anonymous" 20 times a day.

Scuba Steve

Anonymous said...

Anon,

You made it fairly easy to insult your intelligence when you zeroed in on the only bullet point where Bob criticized the officiating. All the while ignoring those points where he praised Pop as a coach, laid the blame for this loss on JET's stupid play in Game 5, mentioned how Parker sucked from the field and Duncan was fairly average and how San Antonio still won.

My suggestion to you is try not to allow yourself to get pulled offsides so easily.

It also doesn't hurt to identify yourself as well.

Anonymous said...

"type here",

I think you mean "couldn't care less"

Anonymous said...

I'm a Spurs fan and Cuban had me convinced that there was no way you could see Terry punching Fin in the ballz in game 5, yet I tune in to watch the game and see no less than 3 different camera angles clearly showing the infraction.
Now, since he came on the ticket as soon as the suspension was announced and made such proclamations, when is he going to say he was wrong? Never. He was trying to make the NBA look bad again, which the NBA does a great job by themselves, but he incited a lot of anger, to only have people watch the video and realize how wrong Cuban was.
I think it's admirable now that the Mavs fans and the Ticket guys, and sports guys in general have said it was Terry that made the mistake, not the NBA. When will Cuban admit as much? Never.
Hardheaded jack-hole.

Anonymous said...

Brad C... I love it. Thanks for doing your small part in making the world a better (more grammatically correct) place.