Jazz vs Spurs: Western Conference Finals

[Flacolaco]

Series page: http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/playof...?series=uthsas

@

SAN ANTONIO (AP-- After the drama both on and off the court that the Utah Jazz and San Antonio Spurs faced during the Western Conference semifinals, the teams are looking forward to just playing the game.

And getting reacquainted in the postseason. The teams last met in the playoffs in 1998, when the Jazz eliminated San Antonio on their way to the NBA finals, where they lost to Chicago.

"We are two teams that try to do the same thing, just put the ball in, play from the inside out, when we have the opportunity we are going to run," Spurs star Manu Ginobili said. "It's going to be fun with a lot of good plays and tough possessions, hard to score. So, we'll see what happens."

Game 1 of the best-of-seven series to decide the West is Sunday in San Antonio.

"They don't make any mistakes," Utah coach Jerry Sloan said. "They're terrific. They do a great job. Their coach does a great job with them. They've got everything you want."

The 1998 playoffs were the last time the Jazz made it to the conference finals. The Spurs won the conference finals in 1999, 2003 and 2005 and went on to win the championship all three times. In 2001 they made it to the conference finals, but lost to the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Jazz have lost their last 16 games in San Antonio, dating to 1999.

"We try to change history. We go down there with the mind-set that what happened before is behind us," Utah's Carlos Boozer said. "We're obviously a different team than a lot of those losses. ... We're looking forward to making some new history, hopefully."

The Jazz won their second-round series with the Golden State Warriors in five games, while the Spurs took six games to eliminate the Phoenix Suns.

The Spurs' series with the Suns was marked by rough play that resulted in one bloodied and bruised eye for Ginobili and six stitches to close a gash across the nose for the Suns' Steve Nash. Nash also went tumbling into the scorer's table at the end of Game 4 after a flagrant foul from Robert Horry. The incident resulted in a two-game suspension for Horry and a one-game suspension for the Suns' Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw for leaving the bench during the minor scuffle.

Hostile words also were exchanged as Stoudemire early on called the Spurs a "dirty team" and targeted Bruce Bowen and Ginobili in particular.

For the Jazz, there were family concerns off the court that made news during their series with the Warriors. Derek Fisher arrived late during Utah's Game 2 overtime win after flying in from a New York hospital, where he was present for his 10-month-old daughter's cancer treatment.

Fisher said his daughter, Tatum, who was diagnosed with retinoblastoma, a cancerous tumor in her left eye, is doing well now and improves with each day.

"To be honest, I really haven't been able to enjoy it much," Fisher said Saturday of Utah's playoff run. "Right now, we're dealing with a lot personally so it's kept me in a really kind of cautiously optimistic state."

The Jazz last played Tuesday, while the Spurs didn't eliminate Phoenix until Friday night, giving them just one full day of recovery time before Sunday afternoon's matchup.

"We understand we're fortunate to be in this position," Bowen said Saturday. "I think a lot of people would rather take this position than complain about fatigue at this point."

Bowen said rebounding will be a key for the Spurs.

"We've had some games against them where we didn't rebound particularly well and because of that they got a late 3 and we don't win the game," said Bowen, who was second for Defensive Player of the Year behind Denver's Marcus Camby. "So it's very important for us to make sure we get in there and try to mix it up with those big bodies."

The Jazz have averaged 46.5 rebounds during the playoffs, eight more than their opponents, while the Spurs have averaged 41 rebounds a game, with their opponents grabbing 41.5 boards per game.

"We just hope our team defense can be good enough," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "It's not an individual thing with Utah. The team has to be able to guard."

The Jazz will have to work to contain Tim Duncan, who was a consistent offensive and defensive force for San Antonio during the series with Phoenix. Duncan has averaged almost 24 points, more than 12 rebounds and better than 3 1/2 blocks during the playoffs.

"He's so skilled. ... He has every move on the block in the post. He's probably the best post player we have in the game," Boozer said. "As a competitor you want challenges. And what better challenge in basketball than for a power forward to go up against Tim Duncan."

Also worth noting.....

Nov 29, 2006 @UTA 83, SA 75
Dec 28, 2006 @SA 106, UTA 83
Jan 31, 2007 @UTA 97, SA 93
Mar 30, 2007 @SA 102, UTA 93

Season series 2-2. Home team won every game.

Quick turn around for SA. Played friday fairly late. Start at 2:30 CST on Sunday afternoon. If the Jazz are going to steal one in SA, this might have to be it.

[Flacolaco]

And the #1 reason the Jazz give me tired head. Music cliches.

let's count them here: http://sports.yahoo.com/nba

"new age music"

"Boozer and Williams have turned into quite an act"

"The Jazz are a hit again due to Williams and Boozer who are in tune with eachother like two Utah Golden oldies"


Good lord, make it stop.

[chumdawg]

I don't think there is any way this one goes longer than five. In fact, I'm going to go ahead and predict a Spurs sweep.

That 5 1/2 to 1 on the Spurs is looking pretty good right about now.

[Steve13]

this series will go to 7 games.

[purplefrog]

I really think this will be a tough series for the Jazz to win. Can Boozer score inside against the Spurs interior defense? Probably not. Who is going to control the speed and quickness of Tony Parker? - Deron Williams? -Dee Brown? Pleeeease! Can Derek Fisher keep up with his hot outside shooting? I guess you never know on this one. I think the Spurs win in 6. The only way the Jazz stay competitive is if AK-47 has a big series on both ends of the court. He needs to be a threat on offense and he will have to protect the paint so Parker doesn't shoot lay ups all day.

[DirkGoesNuclear]

Warriors in 5!

[Flacolaco]

Tony Parker is making it happen.

Jazz are like 4-14 shooting so far. That's pretty bad.

[vjz]

Come on Utah, time to get to the next level. I can't stand a Spurs-Pistons Finals.

[nashtymavsfan13]

I don't expect much from Utah, I'd probably go with Spurs in 5, but it could go longer you never know.

[dirno2000]

The Mavs really did the NBA and it's fans a disservice by bowing out in the first round. The WCF was supposed to be a rematch for the ages. Instead it's going to be SA in 4 or 5 with very little drama.

[Flacolaco]

Perfect storm in the first half.

Utah could use some of those we believe t-shirts.

[RingTheBell]

This series will be ZzzZZzzz...

[rabbitproof]

This pisses me off. Should be Spurs @ Mavericks - Game 1 in another epic series today.....

BULLSHIT!

[fluid.forty.one]

wow Utah is making this almost interesting

[mary]

Williams with the 3-pointer to make it a 7 point game.

The Spurs have done a good job of getting the ball to Finley...and he's been sinking his freethrows with no problem.

[TVI]

Final 108 -102. Spurs win game 1.

[Dtownsfinest]

Jazz made it interesting in the 4th. Where do you guys have Deron Williams ranked as far as pg's go? I thought the comparison with Kidd was on point. Not just their build but they're both pass 1st pg's until there teams need them to score. Deron Williams may have surpassed Chris Paul who I thought was the best pg out of that draft. Jazz gave it there all. They should be proud of their come back. They had what? 36 in the 1st half? Ended up with 100. Scoring 64 against the Spurs in a half is great. Can't ask more from a team. I expect this series to be done in 5 though. NBA really needs to look into reseeding. This is more like a second round series. Should've had the Suns square off against the Warriors in the second.

[rakesh.s]

does anyone think the jazz are going to win more than one game in this series (if they're lucky)?

[u2sarajevo]

2 tops. Utah is a tough place to play.

[vjz]

OK, that was one boring game. The worse WCF game in the last 3 years.

[Henry_VIII]

if you thought that was boring, just wait for the finals

[Dtownsfinest]

What made it boring lol? I thought you guys liked that high scoring type game that the Suns and Warriors do? They both scored in the 100's. Or is it boring because the Mavs aren't in it lol? Then we can agree lol.

[vjz]

Originally Posted by Dtownsfinest

What made it boring lol? I thought you guys liked that high scoring type game that the Suns and Warriors do? They both scored in the 100's. Or is it boring because the Mavs aren't in it lol? Then we can agree lol.

Boring 'cause the game was done in the 2nd quarter when the Spurs built a 20-pt lead.

[nashtymavsfan13]

Originally Posted by Dtownsfinest

What made it boring lol? I thought you guys liked that high scoring type game that the Suns and Warriors do? They both scored in the 100's. Or is it boring because the Mavs aren't in it lol? Then we can agree lol.

Mostly cuz the Mavs aren't in it. But also because I find the Jazz pretty boring to watch, and it really wasn't a very good or close game until the very end. I miss watching Mavs-Spurts games.

[MartinGT]

Originally Posted by vjz

OK, that was one boring game. The worse WCF game in the last 3 years.

Stop whining sore loser!

[4cwebb]

Originally Posted by dirno2000

The Mavs really did the NBA and it's fans a disservice by bowing out in the first round. The WCF was supposed to be a rematch for the ages. Instead it's going to be SA in 4 or 5 with very little drama.

Bump.

[4cwebb]

Originally Posted by Dtownsfinest

Jazz made it interesting in the 4th. Where do you guys have Deron Williams ranked as far as pg's go? I thought the comparison with Kidd was on point. Not just their build but they're both pass 1st pg's until there teams need them to score. Deron Williams may have surpassed Chris Paul who I thought was the best pg out of that draft.

I don't recall whether Kidd was a good defensive PG right out of college, but if he was, then Williams has some work to do to catch up to Kidd in that department.

And I think Deron is light years ahead of where Kidd was at this point in his career in the shooting department (although that may not be saying much).

[dirt_dobber]

Utah's youth gets served in opener

SAN ANTONIO – Don't feel too bad for the Utah Jazz.

It had a nice season.

No one came out and uttered those words Sunday. It didn't matter. You could see it in the way the Jazz played.

Utah was happy to be in the Western Conference Finals but in no way prepared for the intensity required to compete. It was a young team so caught up in a bright future that it ignored the moment.

The final score was much closer than the competitive gap between these teams. San Antonio's 108-100 victory was diminished near the end by the Spurs' lack of urgency and probable fatigue.

Game 1 of the conference finals tipped off less than 40 hours after the Spurs vanquished Phoenix in a physical and exhausting six-game series. San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich and his players echoed the same theme Sunday, saying they were outplayed by Utah in the second half.

"Luckily," Popovich said, "we had enough of a lead to hang in there."

Luckily, Utah coach Jerry Sloan was around to cut through the psychological bull.

First of all, let's set the record straight. Utah did not outplay San Antonio in the second half. It outplayed the Spurs in the final few minutes. San Antonio still held a 90-74 lead with 5:32 remaining.

Now, back to Sloan. He chided his team for losing its concentration and letting the Spurs get any shot they wanted. San Antonio shot 65.6 percent from the field in the first half on its way to an 18-point lead.

Sloan told his players they had to learn to compete. He challenged their lack of accountability.

"I mean, we were shaking our heads at each other," Sloan said. "If one guy made a mistake, you know, it was somebody else's fault.

"That's part of what a young team has to learn. We have to stay together, we have to fight together and bust our tail out there."

Nothing in the Golden State series prepared the Jazz for the fury San Antonio unleashed in the first half. Beating Houston on its home floor in Game 7 of the first round was impressive, but it doesn't necessarily translate to this round, where the stakes are higher and the finals are closer.

Start with Carlos Boozer, Utah's power forward. He has been a monster in these playoffs, but he was a mouse in the first 24 minutes of this game.

Utah was down by 16 points late in the second quarter before Boozer hit his first field goal. He traveled on his next possession, and his shot was blocked on the possession after that.

"My first half was terrible," said Boozer, who finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds. "They did a great job of taking me out a little bit."

Boozer wasn't the only player taken out. Guard Deron Williams of The Colony said falling behind the Spurs by 20 points is like falling behind a normal team by 40.

"If you are going to be intimidated, don't show up," Sloan told his team at halftime. "If you are intimidated, then stay in the locker room. That's the only thing I know to tell them.

"I was disappointed with the way we all competed together to try to have a chance to win."

The Jazz beat the Spurs on the boards. That should be a constant in this series.

But Utah hit 10 consecutive shots in one stretch of the fourth quarter and still failed to shoot 42 percent from the field. The Jazz had almost as many turnovers (14) as assists (16) and allowed the Spurs to keep it out of the lane for most of the game.

San Antonio held a 48-18 edge in points in the paint entering the final period.

"There is no excuse," said Williams, who came to life for 18 of his 34 points in the fourth quarter. "We have got this far, so obviously we can compete. We've just got to come ready next game."

It's clear that Utah wasn't ready in Game 1.

"A lot of things can be determined in this situation as to who they really want to be now and in the future," Sloan said. "I don't want to hear any more about being young. You either grow up and become a better player, or you take the easy route out.

"We will see who we are and go from there."

[V2M]

Originally Posted by 4cwebb

And I think Deron is light years ahead of where Kidd was at this point in his career in the shooting department (although that may not be saying much).

Or more accurately... he's light years ahead of where Kidd was at any point of his career.

[vjz]

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/b...k.3529103.html

When the Spurs knocked out the Suns to set up their meeting with the Jazz, more than a few people speculated the nation's viewing public wouldn't be too interested in watching the two small-market teams.

Apparently, San Antonio isn't all that interested, either.

For the first time in the five-year history of the AT&T Center, the Spurs didn't sell out a playoff game.

The Spurs listed their attendance as 18,300, about 500 short of the 18,797 capacity.

One section in the arena's southeast corner was nearly empty at tipoff and the top two rows in the north end zone also looked empty. They filled in somewhat by game's end, but not to capacity.

[mary]

Originally Posted by vjz

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/b...k.3529103.html

When the Spurs knocked out the Suns to set up their meeting with the Jazz, more than a few people speculated the nation's viewing public wouldn't be too interested in watching the two small-market teams.

Apparently, San Antonio isn't all that interested, either.

For the first time in the five-year history of the AT&T Center, the Spurs didn't sell out a playoff game.

The Spurs listed their attendance as 18,300, about 500 short of the 18,797 capacity.

One section in the arena's southeast corner was nearly empty at tipoff and the top two rows in the north end zone also looked empty. They filled in somewhat by game's end, but not to capacity.

Wow..that's pathetic - especially for a city with no competing sports venues.

[Flacolaco]

How do you not sell out a conference final game? In any sport? Especially the team favored to win it all now?

Wow!

[MavsX]

this here is karl malone..

[DelNegro]

It should have sold out, but I'm sure the quick turnaround kept some people away. It was midnight on Friday before anyone knew whether or not the Spurs would be in Phoenix on Sunday. Tickets didn't even go on sale until noon on Saturday.

If games 2 and 5 don't sell out then that would be pretty damning evidence for apathy about he series, but I doubt that will be the case.

[MavsX]

Utah? do they even have basketball courts in Utah?

[some-dude]

Jazz are doomed. At halftime of the Pistons-Cavs game, Barkely changed his mind and said Jazz would win, even though they are down 0-1....

[Flacolaco]

Originally Posted by MavsX

Utah? do they even have basketball courts in Utah?

They have mormons and lots of vodka, from what I hear.

[MavsX]

polygamy? is that still prevalent in the Mormon church...?

[vjz]

Time to think about moving the Spurs to Las Vegas?

http://www.mysanantonio.com/sports/b...k.3204478.html

Spurs facing another non-sellout

Web Posted: 05/22/2007 12:07 AM CDT

Johnny Ludden
Express-News

If the Spurs are expecting a boost of energy from the crowd tonight, they might want to look elsewhere.

After failing to sell out Sunday's Western Conference finals opener — a playoff first in the AT&T Center's five-year history — the Spurs are in danger of having another less-than-capacity crowd tonight.

About 1,000 tickets, mostly upper-deck seats, remained for the game as of Monday night. In addition to purchasing tickets by phone (210) 225-8326 and online (spurs.com or ticketmaster.com), fans also will now be allowed to buy them at the AT&T Center box office beginning at 8 a.m.

Sunday's listed attendance of 18,300 was about 500 short of capacity. One team official likened Sunday's uninspiring atmosphere to that of a regular-season game.

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[Windmill360]

Pardom my interjection...

******TICKETS FOR GAME 2 STILL ON SALE********

GET THEM WHILE THEY'RE COLD!