Spurs take another step towards redemption

When the San Antonio Spurs returned from Oklahoma City to regroup from two convincing defeats that had evened the Western Conference finals, they had the opportunity to sleep in their own beds, shoot at familiar rims and be surrounded by their supportive fans. But there was one place they did not find the comforts of home: the film room.

The view from the court and the bench in Oklahoma City was bad enough, but the video of those two games was sobering. The lessons appeared well learned. All the things that had been missing lately for the Spurs—the decisiveness on offense and determination on defence—were evident Thursday night as they regained the series lead with a resounding 117-89 victory over the Thunder.

The Spurs will head back to Oklahoma City with a 3-2 series lead and the chance on Saturday night to clinch a return to the NBA finals, where an opportunity to atone for last year’s crushing defeat to Miami would await. For San Antonio, Thursday’s victory also helped stanch unpleasant thoughts of a repeat of the 2012 conference finals, in which the Spurs took a 2-0 series lead against the Thunder before losing four games in a row.

It was hard not to believe that those memories were on the mind of Tim Duncan, who in Game 4 on Tuesday showed rare signs of frustration. Duncan played with his more typical ruthless efficiency Thursday, scoring 22 points and grabbing 12 rebounds as the Spurs regained control of the interior.

Ginobili was the catalyst in the other component of the Spurs’ offense, the drive-and-kick game, collecting 19 points and 6 assists. The Spurs made 12 of 23 3-point attempts, mostly on open looks at the end of several quick passes. Just as significant, the signs of energy that seemed to belong only to the Thunder the last two games were there for the Spurs, particularly the role players.

Danny Green and Patty Mills were making 3-pointers and hounding the Oklahoma City guards. The Spurs’ sense of urgency was apparent in Popovich’s decision making. He inserted the little-used Matt Bonner into the starting line-up for Splitter, hoping that Bonner, a 3-point-shooting specialist, would lure Serge Ibaka, whose presence as a rim protector had changed the series, away from the basket.

Popovich also stuck Leonard, perhaps his best defender, on Westbrook for much of the night. Westbrook, who scored 40 points in Game 4, played well again, but he was not nearly as dominant.