Contributions from Eight Players, Fourth-Quarter Defense Even Series at One

By SonicsKevin

Jerome James, left, responded to being benched by coach Nate McMillan, playing tough defense on Tim Duncan and scoring eight points in the post.

What a difference 48 hours makes. Instead of falling apart in the third quarter and prey to a lengthy San Antonio run, the Sonics displayed their resiliency in changing a two-point deficit at halftime into a two-point lead heading to the fourth quarter. Then they made that lead stand up with strong defense and timely offense down the stretch, holding on for an improbable 98-90 victory that stunned most experts, the Spurs, and quite possibly the Sonics themselves.

Similarly to Saturday, the game was close at halftime, with the Sonics trailing by two after being tied in game one. That left many nervous Sonic fans waiting for a run that never came, with the Sonics holding strong throughout the third quarter. San Antonio did not string together more than two consecutive field goals throughout the third quarter, though a run did appear to be in the offing at the two-minute mark. After the Sonics built their largest lead of the night at 69-63, the Spurs tied the game on a 6-0 run that concluded with a fast break score by Tony Parker. Sonic coach Nate McMillan immediately called timeout, and his team was able to take a lead to the fourth.

San Antonio quickly stole the lead away with a three-pointer from the corner from small forward Bruce Bowen, who scored 11 points and had three three-pointers. But the Sonics responded, reclaiming the lead when rookie Vladimir Radmanovic made a three on the opposite end of the court.

At the eight-minute mark, Rashard Lewis, who played 38 minutes on a bum ankle, scored and was fouled. He made the free throw to complete the three-point play and give the Sonics their largest lead of the game to the point, seven points at 83-76. He and Malik Rose, who was guilty of the foul, his fifth, traded baskets on two straight possessions. The Spurs then came roaring back, getting two free throws from rookie Parker and a basket from Tim Duncan to get within one point of the Sonics at 85-84, the closest they had been since the beginning of the fourth quarter.

It was time for the Sonics to go to their star, Gary Payton. Payton made a seven-footer to put the Sonics back up three, and Lewis followed it with a drive that resulted in a layup and a five-point lead. Then Seattle got some bad news, as backup center Jerome James, who played Duncan tough in the post and scored eight points, fouled out. With their lead at four, the Sonics went back to Payton, who held the ball for 22 seconds on the Sonics' next possession and hit a turnaround jumper to up the lead to six.

At this point, the game deteriorated into a free-throw contest. Duncan and Lewis traded a pair, and Rose and Parker each split a pair of attempts to cut the lead to four. However, San Antonio then fouled Lewis, who made both attempts to put the Sonics back up six with 45 seconds left.

In desperation, the Spurs needed to turn to the three and were unable to make two tries from the perimeter. Payton recovered the ball and was fouled, making one attempt. By this point, the game was essentially over, but Duncan missed another three-point attempt and the Sonics were able to get a fast break, with Desmond Mason putting the exclamation mark on the game with a 360 dunk. Rose made one free throw to provide the final 98-90 margin.

After Seattle's defense fell apart in the third quarter of game one, allowing 38 points, it was nothing short of spectacular in the final three quarters of game two. After giving up a 36-point outburst in the first quarter, the Sonics held San Antonio to just 54 points over the final three quarters, with the Spurs unable to score 20 in any of the periods. In the fourth quarter, despite foul trouble, the Sonics clamped down defensively, holding the Spurs without a field goal in the game's final five minutes and 24 seconds.

After making nine threes in 15 attempts in game one, many of them momentum-builders in the decisive third quarter, San Antonio reversed trend from the perimeter, making just 5 of 17 in game two. The culprits were in the backcourt -- Steve Smith and Parker made 6 of 8 in game one, but combined to shoot 0 of 6 from behind the arc in game two. Parker in particular struggled to repeat his first game heroics, shooting 4 of 11 from the field.

Part of this was the Sonics' defensive strategy, as they decided to switch up from game one and not double-team Duncan. That caused his assists to drop from 11 to three, and Duncan was unable to completely dominate Vin Baker and James in the post, shooting 9 of 19 and doing most of his damage at the free-throw line, where he went 14 for 16 to finish with 32 points and 12 rebounds.

Baker continued his strong offensive output from game one, scoring 15 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Payton, who scored 21 points on 9 of 24 shooting and had 11 rebounds himself, had help besides Baker in game two. Lewis had 19 points, many of them in the fourth quarter, and Mason had 15. Reserve guard Randy Livingston also provided a spark for the Sonics, spelling an ineffective Brent Barry with 23 turnover-free minutes in which he made both attempts from the field.

Official box score