The Brothers' Workshop forum

yyys123 · Joined: 08 Jul 2019 Posts: 855

The Oklahoma City Thunder received a huge boost from a returning Serge Ibaka in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals against the San Antonio Spurs and will try to even the series Tuesday night in Game 4 at Chesapeake Energy Arena. Watch the game live on TSN and TSN GO at 9pm et/6pm pt. The Thunder earned their first win of the set with Sundays 106-97 victory and Ibaka played a big role. After suffering a left calf strain against the Los Angeles Clippers in the previous round, Ibaka was ruled out for the remainder of the postseason. He missed the first two games of the conference finals in San Antonio, but word changed on Friday that the big man had improved tremendously and was considered day-to-day. Ibaka started Game 3 and dominated early, going 4-for-4 from the floor in first quarter. He finished with 15 points, seven rebounds and four blocks in just under 30 grueling, limping minutes. "I was so emotional, but you couldnt really tell because I was on the court," Ibaka said. "I just want to thank my teammates, thank Russell, he tried to get me going early in the game. Kevin (Durant), (Kendrick) Perkins, Reggie (Jackson). I will never stop thanking them for tonight. I will never forget that. It was very special tonight." Without Ibaka, the Thunder allowed the Spurs to shoot at least 50 percent in the first two tilts and San Antonio won them by a combined 52 points. The Spurs shot just 39.6 percent (36-of-91) from the floor in Game 3. Westbrook finished 8-of-19 from the field after missing seven of his first eight shots, netting 26 points to go with eight rebounds and seven assists. Durant added 25 points and 10 boards for the Thunder, who held a commanding 52-36 advantage on the glass. Reggie Jackson, who was inserted into the starting lineup for Thabo Sefolosha, also had 15 in the win. Manu Ginobili nailed six 3-pointers and scored 23 points for San Antonio, which has dropped eight straight to the Thunder in OKC, including the postseason. Tim Duncan added 16 and Kawhi Leonard chipped in 10 in the loss. "I was very disappointed that we didnt come out with more of a foot in the neck sort of an attitude," admitted Spurs coach Gregg Popovich. "They killed us on the board, they beat us on 50/50 balls, and thats very disappointing to me. Thats not the way you approach a game." Ibaka carried OKC in the first quarter, but San Antonio led by one after the first 12 minutes. Westbrook nailed a pair of pull-up triples in the final 30 seconds of the half, including one at the buzzer to give the Thunder a 57-53 cushion heading into the break. Two Perkins free throws at the 8:36 mark of the third capped a 10-2 burst and gave the Thunder a 67-57 cushion. His bonus shots provided OKC its first points not supplied by either Durant or Westbrook since a Jackson floater with 4:01 to play in the second. Ginobili nailed a left wing trey to pull San Antonio within 75-71 with 2:46 to go in the period, but the Thunder extended the margin to 83-76 at the conclusion of the third and then put the game away early in the fourth. Oklahoma Citys lead grew to as many as 20 and the Spurs couldnt get it into single digits. "I think the biggest thing that changed was the intensity on the defensive end," said Durant. "We still turned the ball over more than we should have, but I think we always had great intentions and we moved the ball from side to side tonight." In league history, 94 percent of teams to open a seven-game set 2-0 have gone on to advance. The Spurs sadly know all about the six percent. San Antonio held this exact margin in the 2012 Western Conference finals against Oklahoma City, only to lose the next four and watch the Thunder lose to the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals. Game 5 will be Thursday night in San Antonio. Kevin Durant Shoes Deals .com) - Carmelo Anthony tallied 31 points to help the New York Knicks continue their improved play of late with a 100-92 victory over a short-handed Oklahoma City Thunder squad. Kevin Durant Shoes Outlet . Smith, who raised eyebrows at the CFL combine in March with his ability on both sides of the ball, confirmed in a statement he tested positive for the anabolic steroid Stanozolol prior to auditioning for league officials. https://www.kevindurantshoescheap.com/ . Old times for a defence that has looked just plain old recently? "No," safety Ryan Clark said. "We used to be much better than that. Kevin Durant Shoes For Sale . Reimer told TSNs Mark Masters on Tuesday that he doesnt know if he will be moved leading up to the March 5 trade deadline but added he wasnt interested in discussing it. "Who knows whats going to happen on the horizon here and right now I dont know if I want to talk about it too much. Wholesale Kevin Durant Shoes . As analysts we do the same thing, so here are some observations from week one. First there were two major upsets. I should say, major upsets in the eyes of the fans and prognosticators.ANAHEIM, Calif. - Teemu Selanne and Jean-Sebastien Giguere skated to centre ice under a spotlight on the darkened rink, their clasped hands held aloft. Before Selannes Ducks and Gigueres Colorado Avalanche head to the playoffs in a few days, these two beloved Ducks savored one last chance to feel Anaheims mighty love for them. Nick Bonino scored 1:33 into overtime, and the Ducks finished the best regular season in franchise history with a 3-2 victory over Colorado on Sunday night. But with their playoff position secure, the Ducks used the game to honour Selanne, who plans to retire after the season. Wearing the captains "C," the 43-year-old Finnish Flash got standing ovations on every shift in the third period in Anaheim, his home for 15 of his 21 NHL seasons. "It was more emotion than I ever imagined," said Selanne, the 15th-leading scorer in NHL history with 1,457 points. "Over all the years, these fans have treated me so great. I never expected that, though. It was overwhelming." The largest Ducks crowd of the season serenaded Selanne with applause all night, peaking in wild cheers whenever he touched the puck in Colorados end — even if he narrowly missed several chances to add to his 684 career goals, 11th in NHL history. Selanne took a few laps around the rink after he was awarded all three postgame stars, waving at fans and pounding his heart. When he shook hands with every player on both teams, he seized the chance to share the spotlight with Giguere, who also is leaning toward retirement. "For him to do that, its something thats very special for me, and something Ill never forget," said Giguere, who had two arena suites filled with family and friends. "Hes such a class act. I got the game puck for him. He deserves such an ovation for everything hes done for Orange County and the Ducks." During a first-period timeout, the crowd also stood to cheer Giguere, who stopped 33 shots. "Jiggy" will always be adored in Anaheim after backstopping the once-Mighty Ducks to two Stanley Cup finals, winning the Conn Smythe Trophy in defeat in 2003 and hoisting the Cup in 2007. "It was the best time in my career," Giguere said of the championship season. "Theres no doubt about it, and Im sure it was Teemus, too. I cant think of a better guy to have won the Cup with." Selanne hit the outside of Gigueres post with a shot in the second, and the Flash had several fruitless chances on the power play.ddddddddddddHe got another golden opportunity with 3 1/2 minutes left in regulation, but Giguere robbed him. Selanne and Giguere were the stars of a no-stakes meeting of the Western Conferences two division champions. Anaheim clinched the Wests top spot Saturday, while Colorado won the Central earlier Sunday when St. Louis lost. The Ducks will face Dallas in the first round starting Wednesday, while the Avalanche open against Minnesota on Thursday. "I was so happy for him to play," Colorado coach Patrick Roy said of Giguere. "He wanted to play that game for a while, and we were planning to give it to him. "But obviously the plans changed for a while because we had a chance to finish first in our division. And as soon as Detroit beat St. Louis today, the first thing I did was call Jiggy and said Youre in. Enjoy the night." Patrick Maroon and Saku Koivu scored 3:13 apart to tie it early in the third period for the Ducks, who won seven of nine to close the season. John Gibson made 29 saves to remain unbeaten in his third career start. The Ducks won it when Devante Smith-Pelly controlled the puck in the slot and passed to Bonino, who scored his 22nd goal. Anaheim set club records for victories (54), points (116), goals (263) and comeback victories (26) with this big finish. "Thats going to be the more forgotten-about overtime goal in the history of the Ducks," Bonino said with a laugh. "It was Ts night, and were all happy for him." Brad Malone and Stefan Elliott scored for the Avalanche, who lost for just the third time in 11 games. The Wests most surprising team lost when leading after two periods for just the third time in 38 games this season, but still finished with a club record-tying 52 wins — a record 26 on the road. NOTES: The Ducks rested captain Ryan Getzlaf, who still finished second in the NHL scoring race with 87 points, and Corey Perry, who came in second in the Richard Trophy race with 43 goals. .. These teams opened the season in Denver. The Avalanches 6-1 victory included a shouting match between coaches Bruce Boudreau and Roy. ... Longtime Ducks star Paul Kariya made a rare return to Honda Center for the tribute game, his good friend and longtime teammate. Selanne spent the 2003-04 season with Colorado, teaming with Kariya in a fruitless attempt to win a quick Stanley Cup. Selanne returned to Anaheim after the NHL lockout. ' ' '