Who will go to the finals? It all comes down to these two series.
Indiana took game one last night playing basketball like they did the first half of the regular season--full of energy and great ball handling. They've been in a lethargic state for the entire postseason, but there's something about the Heat that brings out the best in many Eastern Conference teams. Ever since Indiana was eliminated by Miami in game seven of last year's Eastern Conference Finals, they've been waiting for the opportunity to redeem themselves. Game one was that day.
The all-around stats for the Pacers were amazing: Paul George had 24 points and seven assists, David West and Roy Hibbert each had 19 points, Lance Stephenson had 17 points and eight assists, and George Hill had 15 points. CJ Watson added 11 off the bench.
Although Miami's LeBron James and Dwayne Wade played their parts (James had 25 points, five assists and three steels and Wade had 27 points and four assists), the third member of the Heat's Big Three--Chris Bosh--didn't come through (he only had nine points). Not to mention, Miami's other two starters--Shane Battier and Mario Chalmers--had a combination of nine points. Ray Allen added 12 off the bench, but it wasn't enough to win.
The score for the Eastern Conference Final's game one:
Indiana Pacers (107) vs Miami Heat (96)
Although San Antonio struggled against OKC at times (after a 16-point deficit, the Thunder came to tie the game and even take the lead a couple times), the Spurs blew the Thunder away in the fourth quarter and ended up winning by 17.
San Antonio's Big Three showed up tonight: Tim Duncan had 27 points and three assists, Manu Ginobili had 18 points and three assists, and Tony Parker had 14 points and a whopping 12 assists. OKC's dynamic duo of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook showed up as well (Durant had 28 points and five assists and Westbrook had 25 points and seven assists), but foul trouble and turnovers didn't help their cause. Not to mention OKC's third best player, Serge Ibaka, is out indefinitely with a calf injury, and the continuing problem of two players outscoring the rest of the team doesn't work in the long run. It'll get you far, but as we've seen in the last three years, it doesn't get you to the finals (2011, 2013) or win you championships (2012).
The score for the Western Conference Final's game one:
San Antonio Spurs (122) vs Oklahoma City Thunder (105)
Game two starts tomorrow night with the Pacers and Heat at 7:30pm and ends Wednesday night with the Spurs and Thunder at 8pm.
All times are in Central Time.
Indiana took game one last night playing basketball like they did the first half of the regular season--full of energy and great ball handling. They've been in a lethargic state for the entire postseason, but there's something about the Heat that brings out the best in many Eastern Conference teams. Ever since Indiana was eliminated by Miami in game seven of last year's Eastern Conference Finals, they've been waiting for the opportunity to redeem themselves. Game one was that day.
The all-around stats for the Pacers were amazing: Paul George had 24 points and seven assists, David West and Roy Hibbert each had 19 points, Lance Stephenson had 17 points and eight assists, and George Hill had 15 points. CJ Watson added 11 off the bench.
Although Miami's LeBron James and Dwayne Wade played their parts (James had 25 points, five assists and three steels and Wade had 27 points and four assists), the third member of the Heat's Big Three--Chris Bosh--didn't come through (he only had nine points). Not to mention, Miami's other two starters--Shane Battier and Mario Chalmers--had a combination of nine points. Ray Allen added 12 off the bench, but it wasn't enough to win.
The score for the Eastern Conference Final's game one:
Indiana Pacers (107) vs Miami Heat (96)
San Antonio's Big Three showed up tonight: Tim Duncan had 27 points and three assists, Manu Ginobili had 18 points and three assists, and Tony Parker had 14 points and a whopping 12 assists. OKC's dynamic duo of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook showed up as well (Durant had 28 points and five assists and Westbrook had 25 points and seven assists), but foul trouble and turnovers didn't help their cause. Not to mention OKC's third best player, Serge Ibaka, is out indefinitely with a calf injury, and the continuing problem of two players outscoring the rest of the team doesn't work in the long run. It'll get you far, but as we've seen in the last three years, it doesn't get you to the finals (2011, 2013) or win you championships (2012).
The score for the Western Conference Final's game one:
Game two starts tomorrow night with the Pacers and Heat at 7:30pm and ends Wednesday night with the Spurs and Thunder at 8pm.
All times are in Central Time.
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