Spurs Lose Heart-Breaking Game 6, Prepare For Game 7
This NBA Finals series between the San Antonio Spurs and Miami Heat has been one to remember, with plenty of intriguing story lines and stellar play to go around. After last night's thriller, the series will get the finish it deserves: a Game 7.
Game 6 was certainly a contest for the ages. With the Spurs up for the majority of the night, it appeared that the game was in their control and that the hometown Heat fans would have to go home disappointed. LeBron James and Co. stayed in the game just enough, however, to force the rubber match back on their home court Thursday.
"We seen the championship board already out there, the yellow tape. And you know, that's why you play the game to the final buzzer," James said. "And that's what we did tonight. We gave it everything that we had and more."
The game was full of memorable moments and juicy details. One game after pulling out of his slump, Man Ginobili appeared right back in it, scoring only 9 points while committing 8 turnovers. His teammate Tim Duncan had a game reminiscent of his younger years, pouring in 30 points and nabbing 17 rebounds.
Then of course, there was King James. LeBron, who has played so woefully in the fourth quarter of this series, finally stepped it up and dominated down the stretch. Though he got off to a slow start, James was eventually able to get a triple-double, scoring 32 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists.
"He just made plays. I don't think there's any two ways to put it," Duncan said. "We were in the right position to close it out and he found a way to put his team over the top and we just didn't make enough plays to do that."
The game would eventually come down to a made three-pointer by long-range marksman Ray Allen to force overtime with just a little more than five seconds left on the clock. From there, overtime went back and forth as well, with Allen eventually making two free throws to stretch the lead to three, a deficit that the Spurs could not overcome when a last second shot by Danny Green was blocked by Chris Bosh.
To their credit, the Spurs still appear quite unflappable despite their heart-breaking loss on Tuesday night. They will now have a full day to rest before trying again in what should be arena in Miami. So far, their rhetoric has given little indication of them being anything other than ready.
"Some of the guys kept saying, 'If it was the beginning of the season, if somebody asked if we wanted to play a Game 7 for the NBA championship would you say, 'yes' or 'no,' we would say, 'yes.' So we're here. We have this opportunity and we're going to take it," noted Duncan.