Winning on the road is a necessity on the playoffs. I watched this game on the road, in Reno on my way home from my grandmother’s funeral. The Spurs outexecuted the Suns down the stretch and earned a 111-106 to steal homecourt advantage.

This recap will be short because I need sleep after all the driving.

The Suns looked good in the first half but Tony Parker started hot and continued drive and hit jumpers the whole game. A turning point came late in the half when Amare Stoudemire picked up his third foul on terrible call after a stop with six point lead. The Spurs finished with a spurt and the Suns were up two at the half. The Suns inexplicably came out flat in the third and the Spurs took an eight-point lead.

The Suns rallied behind Leandro Barbosa (18 pts) at the end the third to setup a fourth quarter slugfest. There were 11 lead changes in the fourth quarter alone as neither team seemed to flinch. Parker (32 pts) continued to slice up the Suns’ defense. Shawn Marion got his shot going with a few easy pick n’ roll buckets and big three. This was looking like the battle of elites we were expecting and hoping the Suns could pull away and win.

The Suns defense which had been ok, started to lose shooters because of Parker and Duncan (33 pts, 16 reb, 3 blk). Horry and Finley hit a couple threes and it was clear the Spurs had all their weapons locked in. The key play of the fourth quarter happened with 2:53 left. Nash reached for Parker’s dribble and their heads collided. (Of course the foul is called after he motions that he is hurt.) Nash by far got the worst of it, with a large cut on his nose. Suns trainer Aaron tried to stop the bleeding without stiches with very little success. The cut continued to bleed and even though Nash was able to return to hit a game-tying three, he had to sit out a few crucial possessions where the Suns were unable to score in the final minutes. Leandro Barbosa and Amare Stoudemire looked a little tight and couldn’t convert plays with the game on the line. Stoudemire misses two shots at the rim and LB commited two bad fouls. As the Suns unraveled, the Spurs pulled out the win.

Positives
Nash (31 pts, 8 ast) set the tone and took what the defense gave him.

Concerns
Inability to make plays with the game on the line. Uneven energy and effort. Marion and Stoudemire seemingly forgot dunk attempts are better than floaters at the rim.

Thoughts
It may have been the sound in the sports book where I was watching but it seems like the Suns have a quiet crowd. It doesn’t help when the team starts the third with no energy against a team that capitalizes on mistakes. I was in Oakland when the Warriors upset the Mavericks and that crowd was a huge advantage. Sure the team had been bad for a long time but those fans made sure the team had energetic support. Even the people I was watching with were yelling at the TV.

The Suns fans seemed to be like the gamblers I was watching with in the casino. The ones who bet on the Suns had taken the over and the point spread. So they needed the Suns to win by five and for both teams to score over 100. The response to Suns baskets was celebratory but nothing close to passionate- even with money on the line. That’s how the Suns crowd seems to me. Unless the team is up by 25, they just aren’t a factor. Losing home-court advantage in this matchup may not be a big deal because the Spurs crowd might be worse. They have the same sober, methodical approach as their team- we’ll turn it on down the stretch.

This loss doesn’t mean the series is over but it highlights the importance of winning on the road. The Suns have to win a game in San Antonio if they are going to win this series. They have to put someone on Tony Parker who won’t concede numerous layups and has the quickness to stay with him and some strength to foul him hard (Marcus Banks?). Parker has killed the Suns this year with the drive and his jumper. Perhaps guarding like Shaq (different looks, using fouls) will help because Parker isn’t a playmaker, he’s a scorer.

This Spurs team is more reliant on their stars than their title teams. While Ginobili was held in check, Duncan and Parker had their way. Michael Finley has become a standstill jumpshooter but he was repeatedly left open. Defensive adjustments are necessary because the Suns need swarming defense to make the game chaotic and to setup chances to attack the Spurs in transition.

The Spurs are built upon executing against all attacks. Much like Dallas, they can play any way but they don’t have the athleticism to match the Suns in a full-court game. While Game 1 was high scoring, the Suns didn’t have the pace advantage nor the three-point shooting advantage they normally have. The Spurs lull teams to sleep by hanging around and then turning into a basketball clockwork orange in the final two minutes. The Suns didn’t have their leader on the court for much of crunch time. The Spurs smelled blood and pulled out the win.

Original post by Hersey and software by Elliott Back

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