After overcoming a slow start, the San Antonio Spurs seemed poised to win Game 2 of their second-round playoff series against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant had different ideas, though. The Thunder stars withstood multiple San Antonio runs and a hectic final play to even the series at one win apiece with a 98-97 victory in San Antonio on Monday.
Thunder vs. Spurs 2016 final score: Oklahoma City shocks San Antonio to take Game 2
Despite 41 points from LaMarcus Aldridge, the Thunder held on for a 98-97 win to even the series.
Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
Westbrook had 29 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds, and Durant had 28 points to lead the Thunder.
LaMarcus Aldridge had another monster performance with 41 points, but it wasn't enough as the Spurs lost their first game of the playoffs. Game 3 is in Oklahoma City on Friday.
The Spurs missed 12 of their first 13 shots as the Thunder blitzed their way to a 29-21 lead at the end of one quarter. Their intensity was on another level -- everyone on the court for Oklahoma City was playing with the energy of Russell Westbrook. Unlike the Thunder in Game 1, the Spurs didn't fold after their slow start. Instead, they kept a game that could have gotten away from them somewhat close. The Thunder lead after one could have easily been much worse, but the Spurs trailed by only eight. They erased that lead almost immediately in the second quarter behind the superb play of Aldridge and Kawhi Leonard, and even took the lead midway through the frame. They outscored the Thunder 32-27 in the second and trailed 56-53 into the half.
The Thunder showed some fight, too. They came out strong in the third quarter as they built up an 11-point lead, but the Spurs once again wouldn’t give in. San Antonio fought back with a 10-2 run with Russell Westbrook on the bench and trailed by only one, 77-76, at the end of the third.
Oklahoma City jumped out in the fourth with an 8-0 run, but two Danny Green threes sparked an 8-0 response that put the Spurs right back in it with less than six minutes to play. It turned into Durant and Westbrook vs. Aldridge down the stretch. A Durant floater gave the Spurs a five-point lead with 33.2 seconds left, but an Aldridge three with 25.8 seconds left made it interesting.
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Westbrook made two free throws to extend the lead to four, but the Thunder fouled Aldridge on a three-point attempt, and he made all three to make it a one-point game. The Thunder turned the ball over on the ensuing inbounds play, but the Spurs couldn't take advantage -- Patty Mills missed a three from the corner and the Thunder held on for an improbable win. All of that said, this elbow in the final seconds probably could have been called a foul against Dion Waiters.
Here are three things we learned:
These teams come out firing, but the Spurs fight back
After Game 1, it was pretty clear Westbrook and Durant needed to come out angry in Game 2. Fortunately for Oklahoma City, the entire Thunder squad did. They challenged every shot San Antonio took as they jumped out to a 9-2 lead, with Westbrook scoring seven of those points. It helped that the Spurs couldn’t buy a bucket -- they started the game 1-of-13 from the field.
The Spurs are unrelenting, though. When they built up a double-digit lead early in Game 1, they kept hammering. But the Thunder couldn't hold their own early lead in Game 2 -- it had evaporated moments into the second quarter. As the Spurs struggled in the first quarter, coach Gregg Popovich told his team to remain composed. "Know who we are," he said in a huddle. The Spurs remembered, and even though they lost, they made it one heck of a game.
LaMarcus Aldridge is too much for the Thunder
After going off for 38 points in Game 1, Aldridge picked up right where he left off in Game 2. He had 22 in the first half -- keeping the Spurs in the game after they fell into an early hole -- and continued to pick apart the Oklahoma City defense throughout the night. As a whole the Spurs couldn’t match their Game 1 performance (who would expect them to?), but Aldridge somehow did. He made bucket after bucket down the stretch when the Spurs needed them most. The team came up short, but it was no fault of Aldridge. He has been superb against the Thunder, averaging 39.5 points per game in the series.
The problem for the Spurs, however, is that Aldridge needs some help. Kawhi Leonard had a subpar game by his standards with 14 points. Oddly enough for the Spurs, it was a lack of role players that spelled their doom.
We’ve got ourselves a series
After the Game 1 rout, it was easy to count the Thunder out. But you should never count out Westbrook and Durant. They showed up in Game 2 and the Thunder shocked the Spurs. They must continue to press in each and every moment, or the Thunder won’t stand a chance. For now, though, they’re exactly where they want to be. They’re being outscored in the series, but they’re even in the win column. The Thunder weren’t supposed to win one in San Antonio -- now they’re heading back to Oklahoma City with home-court advantage.
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