I’m guessing Tony Parker slept pretty well last night. Although the San Antonio point guard has been dealing with a troublesome left calf, set to be evaluated on Thursday, he showed no signs of hesitation Tuesday night. Parker had 15 points and a career-best 18 assists in San Antonio’s 93-89 Game 2 win against Memphis in the Western Conference Finals. A game that went to overtime via a Mike Conley and Jerryd Bayless inspired 15-2 run over the final 8 minutes of regulation, the Spurs showed signs of deceleration down the stretch. Signs, that were far from present throughout the first three quarters.
-Back to Parker. Good god did that man have it going on Tuesday night. For a while there it felt as though if Parker wasn’t draining an off-balance jump shot, he was setting up another Spur, flying across the court for all of his 42 minutes on the court. A well balanced offense and cohesive defense in overtime were key for the Spurs as they took an important 2-0 lead on Memphis, who must now win both games at home to keep this from being a series decided on the road. Tim Duncan looked as young as ever in overtime, coming up with 1 of his 4 blocks in the deciding quarter and scoring the Spurs first 6 points of OT, taking apart Zach Randolph’s exhausted attempts at defense. It appears he has some gas left in the tank, and San Antonio fed off it Tuesday night.
On the Memphis side of things, it was the same story different tune for Zach Randolph. Stats wise, ZBO had a pretty decent game with 15 points on 6-18 shooting along with 18 rebounds and 2 blocks, most of which came in the 3rd and 4th quarters. However, what isn’t present in his stat column is how much he hurt the Grizzles down the stretch Tuesday night. Clearly gassed from 45 minutes of play, Randolph was slow and taxing throughout overtime, hurting Memphis defensively (he guarded Tim Duncan most of the quarter, and Duncan went off) and taking off-balanced shots, which couldn’t seem to find the bottom of the net. Mike Conley had the game that he needed (18pts, 4 dimes), bringing the Grizzlies back in the closing minutes, but he’s going to need offensive help come Game 3. While Jarryd Bayless also had a great night (18pts on 7-18 shooting), the last two shots of overtime were downright abysmal. Down three with 14.6 seconds left, Bayless hoisted an off-balance three that drew a horrified and disappointed expression from Lionel Hollins. Clearly, Bayless was hyped after his great night and thought he could be the hero Tuesday, but that shot has to go to your leader, Conley. Even dumping it into Gasol or a cutting Tony Allen would’ve been a better decision, but hey, Bayless is 24-years-old. It’ll be interesting to note whether Tayshaun Prince chooses to show up in Game 3, as he continued his poor play Tuesday night with just 2pts and 2rebs.
One thing’s for certain, if Memphis wants this series, they’re going to have to do much more than make a later run in the 4th, because the Greg Popovich that I know, won’t allow San Antonio to make those same mistakes again.