The Golden State Warriors nearly pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the 2013 postseason on Monday in Game 1 of the Western Conference semis against the San Antonio Spurs, but after a furious comeback, it was the Spurs who won and left the Warriors wondering what happened.
Stephen Curry was phenomenal in Game 1, scoring 44 points, but he couldn't come through in double overtime and it was the Spurs who were able to take Game 1 instead of the Warriors, who could have taken a big advantage in the series with a road win. Curry is averaging 22 points in the playoffs and after dropping so many in Game 1, he will be looking to go even bigger in Game 2 after getting motivation from the loss. The Spurs won 129-127 after an amazing shot by Manu Ginobili with just two seconds left and the Warriors couldn't respond after Jarrett Jack hoisted a three at the end.
The Warriors had thought they would finally snap the 29 game losing streak in San Antonio, but after a 18-2 run to the end the fourth quarter, Golden State went through two overtimes and lost, pushing the streak to 30 and in Game 2 they will be looking to end it for good. The Spurs came back from 16 points down with four minutes left and the Warriors will now be on their heels after such a furious output. The Spurs nearly lost it in overtime when Ginobili threw up a random three point shot, but he came back and redeemed himself after taking an inbounds pass from Kawhi Leonard with 3.9 seconds left to make the shot that won the game. Ginobili had missed seven shots before he made the three and now the Spurs have the momentum in Game 2.
Curry added 22 points in the third quarter and had 11 assists and throughout the playoffs he has proven to be one of the top shooters and elite scorers in the league. The Spurs will try to keep him under 40 points in Game 2 and the Warriors should continue to get solid production from Klay Thompson and Andrew Bogut, who was huge in Game 1.
The Spurs were able to overcome some sick feelings from Tim Duncan, who left the game in the fourth and later returned in overtime. Duncan said he felt much better after the game and would likely not be limited in Game 2. Curry said he felt tired after the fourth quarter ended and coach Mark Jackson may limit his minutes a bit after the double overtime game. Coach Greg Popovich was ready to go after Ginobili when he threw up that three pointer with just 44 seconds left in the game, but he clearly made up for it with his clutch performance at the end and now the Spurs can go into Game 2 knowing they have a 1-0 advantage.