The San Antonio Spurs won the opening game of the best of seven National Basketball Association Finals, beating the visiting New Jersey Nets by 12 points Wednesday night. Even though Tim Duncan led all scorers, the league's Most Valuable Player gave a lot of credit for the win to 37-year-old David Robinson, who has said he's retiring when the season is over.
The San Antonio Spurs take game one of the NBA finals 101-89 over the New Jersey Nets, ending the Nets' 10-game winning streak in the playoffs.
The game was tied at the half 42-42, and then San Antonio outscored New Jersey 32-17 in the third quarter. Tim Duncan finished with 32 points, 24 of them in the second half, 20 rebounds and a playoff-high seven blocked shots. But the MVP said it was David Robinson who brought the energy.
"When David plays like that, we are so much tougher to beat," he said. "He was incredible tonight. He was all over the place. He played with great energy. He really had some pop [spring] in his legs, and when he plays like that, we're really dangerous."
Robinson was six of eight from the field, scored 14 points and added four blocked shots of his own. Again, the Spurs lead the finals 1-0 over the Nets. Game 2 is in San Antonio Friday night.
