Tim Duncan scored 27 points, grabbed seven rebounds and logged more than 35 minutes to lead the San Antonio Spurs to a 90-85 win against the Dallas Mavericks in the first game of the Western Conference playoffs.

Despite Mr. Fundamental’s great performance, however, the Spurs had several troubles to overcome a resilient Mavericks team at the AT&T Center. Dallas’ strong defensive effort was noticeable in the poor shooting percentages posted by San Antonio – 43 percent from the field and a putrid 17 percent from beyond the arc – but that wasn’t enough to stop the top-seeded team in the West.

The Spurs’ Big Three worked perfectly from start to finish and they were instrumental for the team’s success in the series opener. Aside from Duncan’s 27 points – where he shot 12-from-20 from the field – Tony Parker added 21 with six assists and Manu Ginobili scored 17 points with six rebounds coming from the bench.

San Antonio’s real value to win the game relied on the defensive end. Tiago Splitter grabbed 11 rebounds protecting the rim, Danny Green blocked two shots and the defense as a unit was magnificent to stop Dallas’ dynamic duo of Monta Ellis and Dirk Nowitzki. Both players combined to score only 22 points – going 8-from-28 from the field – and Devin Harris was the Mavs’ main offensive weapon. The veteran PG scored 19 points and added five assists coming off from bench.

The Spurs held the Mavs to only one FG in the final seven minutes of the contest.

The Spurs used their experience to come away with the win in their first game of the series, something was widely expected comparing how both teams performed in the regular season. However, San Antonio will need to step their game up if they want to avoid any kind of surprise on their way to a second-consecutive trip to the NBA Finals.

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About the author
Juan Pablo Aravena
26-year-old Chilean sports journalist with three years of experience in different websites and platforms. Covering all four major sports for VAVEL USA, international soccer for VAVEL UK and Latin American Soccer for VAVEL LatAm.