Lakers let Manu & Spurs Back into Series

Spurs rally back from 30 point beat down in game 2, and win at home.  The Lakers had their foot on the throat of the San Antonio Spurs but Manu Ginobili would not let them submit.  The Lakers went into San Antonio with a commanding 2-0 series lead and a huge psychological advantage over the seemingly, “too old” Spurs.  Game 1 saw the Spurs blow a 20-point lead and loose to, a red-hot shooting, Kobe Bryant second half performance. Game 2 was a 30-point blow out in the Lakers favor.  The Spurs were out played, over matched, and looked old while they played in the Staples Center.  Then they flew home and re-grouped.

 Game 3 took a whole new form; Manu Ginóbili scored 30 points on Sunday, quadrupling his output from his previous game and restoring the Spurs’ luster, he put the sputtering Spurs on his back and willed them to a 103-84 victory.  Did he take a revitalizing swim in the cool waters of the San Antonio Riverwalk healing his busted up ankle? Did he summon strength from all the Argentinean flags flopping around the AT&T Center? Or did he just get back to playing like Manu?

“I was too stagnant the first two games,” Ginóbili said. “I didn’t feel like I was being me.”

The ankle, which he injured early in the first round of the playoffs, was presumed to be the cause when Ginóbili scored 17 points in the first two Spurs defeats, though he insisted otherwise.

 

For the first time, the Lakers were the ones who left the arena with furrowed brows. Lamar Odom, their most versatile player, had a terrible game, with 7 points, 5 turnovers and a 2-for-11 shooting line. Pau Gasol, their best big man, had 15 points and missed 11 of 18 shots. The Lakers scored just 33 points combined in the middle two quarters, allowing San Antonio to pull away.

The Spurs shot 51 percent, and got great performances from all three of their big guns. Tim Duncan had 22 points and 21 rebounds. Tony Parker finished with 20 points.

Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 30 including 4 three’s in the 4^th quarter, but that was only enough to cut the lead to 12. The Lakers never found their defense and Odem never found his game.

The change of venue did not suit Odom, who scored 20 points in Game 2. He forced several plays in the first half, particularly when Bryant was on the bench, and his struggles helped put the Lakers in a 49-39 hole at halftime. Odom had three turnovers in the half, while missing 6 of 7 the field and 4 of 6 from the line.

“There’s no way I can play like that for us to be successful,” Odom said. “I’ll take the blame on that.”

 

Game 4 is tonight in San Antonio where the Spurs are 7-0 at home in the playoffs. Duncan has 55 rebounds in this series; Gasol and Odom have a combined 56.

 

The Spurs have also been here before, having lost the first two games in New Orleans before coming back to win in seven in the Western Conference semifinals.

 

The Lakers still control home court and if they can stop Ginobili tonight, and squeak out a win, they can put their foot back on the throat of the rejuvenated Spurs.