The San Antonio Spurs came into Game 6 without Tony Parker and Kawhi Leonard and embarrassed the Houston Rockets on their home floor, closing out the series 4-2 to advance to the Conference Finals.
Setting the tone early
LaMarcus Aldridge got involved early, scoring 10 points in the first quarter to set the tone and establish himself down low. Without Leonard, the Spurs used impressive ball movement and man movement to take a seven-point first quarter lead.
James Harden did not have a made field goal in the first period.
Busting open a huge lead
In Leonard's absence, Jonathon Simmons earned the start and filled in adequately. The athletic wing had 13 points at the half, scoring in various ways. Meanwhile, Harden continued to struggle through the second quarter. He looked lackadaisical on both ends of the floor, with just five points to go along with five careless turnovers and three fouls. Aldridge had 16 points by halftime, and Patty Mills put in 10 points and four assists.
The Spurs defense dominated the Rockets, forcing tough, highly contested threes and a lot of turnovers.
They also moved the ball so well offensively, accumulating 18 team assists. Surprisingly, Clint Capela led the Rockets through two-quarters with 13 points and nine rebounds.
The dominance continues in the second half
More of the same dominance continued in the third quarter. LaMarcus Aldridge added 12 more points in the third to help the Spurs extend the lead to 25. Rookie Dejounte Murray also got involved, scoring and playing superb defense, while Harden’s shooting woes continued.
Despite having third string players on the court in the fourth stanza, the Spurs continued to play extremely well, extending the lead to 42 points and ultimately winning by 39, 114-75. It was an old-fashioned beat down by the Spurs, who were clicking on all cylinders tonight.
How badly did the Spurs dominate this game?
Taking a look at the box score, the Spurs thoroughly dominated in every category. They shot 53.1 percent from the field while holding the Rockets to 28.6 percent shooting. They also out-rebounded Houston, 60-37, and had 32 team assists compared to Rockets’ 14. San Antonio also took very good care of the ball, amassing just seven turnovers. The Rockets had 13 miscues, in which Harden had almost half of them with six of his own.
Aldridge finished with a game-high 34 points and 12 rebounds on 16-of-26 shooting from the floor. Simmons had 18 points and four assists, while Mills added 14 points and seven assists. Pau Gasol notched a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds to go along with five assists and three blocks.
Off the bench, Murray contributed 11 points, ten rebounds, five assists, two steals, and a block.
Trevor Ariza led the Rockets in scoring with 20 points, and Clint Capela concluded with a double-double of 15 points and 12 rebounds. Harden put up 10 points, seven assists, and three rebounds on 2-of-11 shooting, with six turnovers and six fouls.
It was an surprising game, as no one expected the Spurs to win without superstar Kawhi Leonard, much less blowout the Rockets by 39. The Spurs advance to the Western Conference to play the Golden State Warriors, as the series will begin on Sunday in Oakland.