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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Sports
Thursday, June 24, 1999
Towers get support, lift Spurs near title
By KEN BERGER
AP Sports Writer
NEW YORK — The San Antonio Spurs played like a championship team, with
the emphasis on team.
For a change, the Twin Towers didn't stand alone.
With plenty of help for 7-footers Tim Duncan and David Robinson, the
Spurs rediscovered their road magic Wednesday night with a 96-89 victory
over the New York Knicks in Game 4 of the NBA Finals. They took a 3-1 lead
in the best-of-7 series, a lead no team has ever relinquished in the final
round.
From the shortest man on the court — Avery Johnson — all the way to
Duncan and Robinson, the Spurs played like a team that is no longer content
to stand around and wait for the 7-footers to carry them.
Now the Spurs have three chances to win one more time and give San Antonio
its first NBA title.
"We have an opportunity to do something special, first time in San Antonio,"
said Mario Elie, who scored 18 points. "Hopefully, we can finish it off."
Duncan followed his worst game of the finals with a 28-point, 18-rebound
performance. Robinson had 14 points and 17 rebounds, nine of them at the
offensive end for the Spurs, who refused to let their six-game playoff
winning streak on the road turn into a two-game losing streak.
Instead of standing back and admiring the big guys, Elie, Johnson and
Sean Elliott were there to make whatever shots, steals, rebounds or passes
the Spurs needed to keep the resilient Knicks coming back and tying the
series.
Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy said, "Size does matter in this league."
Not on this night. Not to the Spurs, and not during the crucial final
moments of what the Knicks tried to turn into one of the biggest victories
ever recorded in Madison Square Garden.
Instead, it turned into one giant step for the Spurs and another disappointment
to add to the Knicks' postseason lore.
"This is the ultimate challenge," said New York's Allan Houston, who
scored 20 points, but had three of the Knicks' 11 misses as they got within
two points, but no closer, in the final 5« minutes. "Our backs can't
be any further against the wall than when you're down 3-1 in the finals."
The Spurs beat the Knicks in every way possible, whether it was Duncan
with his back to the basket, Robinson soaring above the rim or Elie throwing
down a dunk and talking trash with Spike Lee.
"Toughness, man. That's what New York City ball's all about," said Elie,
who recovered from a terrible Game 3 and shot 6-for-9 in the arena that
is five minutes from where he grew up. "Going to the basket hard, finishing
the play, dunking on people and talking trash. That's New York City ball."
Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail news@pecos.net
Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium.
Copyright 1999 by Pecos Enterprise
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