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NEW ORLEANS: David West battled through a pinched
back nerve for the game of his life and as a result, defending
National Basketball Association champion San Antonio is on the brink
of a playoff exit.
The 27-year-old power forward
scored 38 points to spark New Orleans past San Antonio 101-79
Tuesday, giving the Hornets a three games to two edge over the Spurs
in the best-of-seven Western Conference second-round series.
West’s point total, off
16-of-25 shooting, was a career playoff high as were his 14 rebounds
and five blocked shots.
“I was disappointed with how I
played. I wanted to come out and have a big night,” West said.
“We attacked them aggressively. We made them come out of their
comfort zone.”
There is little comfort for the
Spurs, who are in jeopardy of falling short in their bid for a fifth
NBA crown in 10 seasons after fading in the third quarter for the
third road playoff game in a row.
“The New Orleans defense was
great,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “Their defense was the
reason we had so many problems in the third quarter. Give them
credit for that.”
The Hornets can advance to the
NBA semifinals with a victory Thursday at San Antonio, where the
Spurs will try to continue the home-team domination in the series
and force a seventh game back here on Monday.
The winner will face Utah or the
Los Angeles Lakers in the West final for a spot in the championship
series. The Lakers and Jazz are deadlocked 2-2 with Game 5 in Los
Angeles on Wednesday.
--AFP
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