NBA-best San Antonio Spurs humiliate the Miami Heat with a 125-95 win - Part 1
In the first meeting between the two NBA heavyweights, the San Antonio Spurs crushed Miami Heat by 125-95 on Friday night at AT&T Center.
LeBron “King” James and the Miami Heat completely surrendered in front of the offensive prowess of the Spurs. The Eastern Conference contenders have now lost their third consecutive and fourth of the last five games.
San Antonio on the other hand, improved their league's best record to 51-11 and recorded their 22nd straight home victory. The Spurs were sizzling from downtown in the game. They finished the night with 17 long range efforts and in doing so tied the franchise record.
For the Heat, this was the most asymmetrical and embarrassing loss of the season. Miami's previous worst loss was a 28-point blowout against the Denver Nuggets on January 13, 2010. The loss was Miami's second in a row.
San Antonio was led by a balanced attack, as eight players scored in double-figures. Manu Ginobili contributed 20 points, scoring 11 of those during a runaway first quarter. Matt Bonner continued his mid-range shooting display and hit six of San Antonio's 17 three-pointers for 18 points.
Tony Parker made a surprise comeback to the starting lineup in less than a week after the Spurs feared he might miss up to a month with a strained calf. Tony did not seem bothered at all by the injury as he came off the bench with 15 points and eight assists. Spurs forward Tim Duncan finished with 11 points and 14 rebounds.
He was ecstatic after the blow-out win. Duncan said that it is a great experience to show home-talent while playing against one of the best teams of NBA.
"It is just better when the best teams come in here and you can really lock in and see what we have," Duncan said.
Forward Richard Jefferson and the 24-year-old guard George Hill also registered 11 points each for the Spurs, who are undefeated at home since November 26. The MVP of the Rookies Challenge, DeJuan Blair played well as he scored 10 points and pulled down three assists and six rebounds.
For Miami, James chipped in with a game-high 26 points, grabbed seven assists and eight rebounds in the defeat. Chris Bosh recorded 17 points and 14 rebounds in the losing effort. Dwyane Wade however could not find his rhythm in the contest as he finished with just 19 points for Miami.
However he was confident of ending the tail spin. Wade said that the current losing streak is nothing new for them as they have been through the same situation before.
“We have been through losing before, so it is not anything new. In this league, you can turn it around fast or you can stay in it for a while,” Wade said.
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