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| Phoenix nearly stole Game 1. |
Credit must go to Fred VanVleet, whose five 3PT beauties got him 21 points on the night. The entire Spurs team overcame foul trouble, with FVV enduring five personal fouls to help the cause. Brandon Ingram ignited for 32 points, 2 steals & 2 blocks, shooting 11-19 and hitting two clutch 3PT shots. Andre Drummond was the spark of the comeback, grabbing 15 rebounds and giving the Spurs 15 second-chance points en route to fifteen threes as a team.
Drummond scored 16 points with 3 blocks. P.J. Tucker was also essential, filling in for a chilly 4-16 shooting night by Kent Bazemore (11 points), scoring 13 points and hitting three veteran-savvy perimeter strokes of survival. Dejounte Murray still has yet to decipher the Suns defensive strategy against him, having struggled to have his typical big scoring nights in all five games so far this season. He managed 10 points with 9 assists to make up for it, but shot 5-14. Joe Harris provided some help with 8 points, hitting an impressive floater over DeAndre Ayton (22 points, 23 rebounds, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 11-17 FG%) and a trademark 3PTer during the fourth quarter upheaval.
In the stunning debacle, Devin Booker had a rocky night, going 6-13 for just 15 points. Ricky Rubio had 7 assists, but just 13 points, going 5-12. Kelly Oubre, Jr. paired with Dario Saric for 26 points. Mikal Bridges had 12 points & Frank Kaminksy III had 10 points. Phoenix lost the 4th Quarter, 25-36.
The Rest:
The Suns shot 55%, with just 47% by the Spurs. They only hit on six 3PT attempts, however, totaling 12 turnovers compared to only six by the Spurs. After losing the paint battle 74-50 and the fast break 25-13, Coach Popovich was not fond of the details despite the huge turnaround win. "We've got to be better. It's that simple. They had us calling in the priest. I'm proud of our effort to sneak out the back, but we've gotta man the front a lot better."
