Clanregeln » job of taking away those second chances

SAN ANTONIO -- Portland coach Terry Stotts is running out of adjectives and analogies to describe the San Antonio Spurs dominance in the second quarter. Kawhi Leonard scored 20 points, Tony Parker had 16 points and 10 assists, and San Antonio rolled to a 114-97 victory over the Trail Blazers on Thursday night for a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference semifinals. After being struck by a "tidal wave" during the second quarter of the opener, Portland took on even more water in Game 2. "The onslaught at the beginning of the second quarter was obviously the turning point in the game," Stotts said. Boris Diaw scored six straight points to ignite a 23-8 run that gave San Antonio a 54-36 lead with 7 minutes remaining in the first half. The Spurs outscored the Trail Blazers 41-25 in the second quarter, raising their advantage to 77-48 in that period in winning the first two games of the best-of-seven series convincingly. Nicolas Batum scored 21 points for the Trail Blazers. Damian Lillard had 19 points and LaMarcus Aldridge added 16 points and 10 rebounds, but the Trail Blazers All-Star duo put up 43 shots. Aldridge was 6 for 23, missing back-to-back dunks in the second quarter. "We missed a lot of shots," Aldridge said. "I definitely wasnt in a good rhythm tonight. I missed two dunks and four or five layups, so if those shots go in, then the whole game is different." The Trail Blazers host Game 3 on Saturday night. Manu Ginobili added 16 points, Marco Belinelli scored 13 and Diaw had 12 as San Antonios reserves outscored Portlands 50-19. Making matters worse for the Trail Blazers, reserve Mo Williams was limited to 9 minutes due to a groin injury. He finished with four points. "Our bench is coming alive," Parker said. "They had a hard first round. They had a hard time against Dallas, but the last two games the bench is playing well." The Trail Blazers, who found a snake in their locker room before the game, had a much better start than in Game 1. Batums 3-pointer gave Portland its first lead of series at 7-4 with 9:47 remaining in the first quarter. It lasted for 16 seconds before Leonards 3 tied it. San Antonio soon began using the quicker pace to force turnovers and find open shooters. The Spurs had 17 fast-break points in the first half compared to two by the Trail Blazers. Wesley Matthews was clearly frustrated, taking his mouthpiece out and looking upward in frustration before glaring at his teammates. Matthews responded by scoring 10 straight points in the third quarter while San Antonio went scoreless for 4 minutes, pulling Portland within 81-69 with 2 minutes remaining in the third. After losing 116-92 in the opener, Portland was sparked by greater activity by Robin Lopez, who had six rebounds and a blocked shot in the opening six minutes. He struggled once Diaw entered the game. Portland did not allow any fast-break points in the second half, closing within 10 points midway through the final quarter. Lillards 18-foot jumper pulled the Blazers within 92-80 with 9:17 remaining and his driving layup a minute and half later cut the margin to 94-84. Batum, who was 1 for 5 on 3-pointers in Game 1, hit his third of the game to cut the lead to 99-91 with 5:37 remaining. "The first two games, they went on a big run in the first half of both games," Lillard said. "Then in the second half, we come out and make those adjustments and those corrections and clean things up and then we play a much better half. We have to do a better job of taking away those second chances." The Trail Blazers had a chance to close within seven inside 5 minutes, but Leonard blocked Matthews layup from behind to maintain the Spurs advantage at 102-93. Parker followed with a jumper in the lane on Lillard, and Leonard and Ginobili hit back-to-back 3s to put San Antonio up 110-93 and put the game out of reach. NOTES: Portlands Thomas Robinson found the snake two hours before tipoff when he reached for a bag in his locker. The team initially thought it was a baby rattlesnake, but stadium officials later determined it was a non-venomous snake. The snake was estimated between 3 to 4 feet in length. ... Spurs general manager R.C. Buford was honoured before the tip after being awarded NBA Executive of the Year on Wednesday. Buford, who won the award for the first time in his 12th season as the teams general manager, received a rousing ovation from the sell-out crowd. ... Parker had to towel off after having beer spilled on his left leg when he tumbled into the courtside seats 2 minutes into the game. <a href="http://www.englandsoccerpro.com/Jamie-Vardy-England-Jersey/">Jamie Vardy Jersey</a>. HABS HEADED TO CONFERENCE FINAL The Montreal Canadiens scored early in Game Seven, built a lead and protected it well on their way to a 3-1 series-clinching win over the Boston Bruins. 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With one penalty, Fourcade finished in 24 minutes, 58.2 seconds, just nine-tenths of a second ahead of Timofey Lapshin, who shot clean in the cold. <a href="http://www.englandsoccerpro.com/Jordan-Henderson-England-Jersey/">Jordan Henderson Jersey</a>. -- Quarterback Josh Johnson has returned to the San Francisco 49ers and his former college coach, Jim Harbaugh. <a href="http://www.englandsoccerpro.com/">England Jerseys</a>.Heres Ralph the Dog with the crew here at TSN jumping into the James Duthie TradeCentre selfie: Happy to drop by! RT @TSN_Sports: @tsnjamesduthie: Take this Ellen.MELBOURNE, Australia - Eugenie Bouchards jaw dropped a little and her eyes went wide when the male presenter conducting her on-court interview at the Australian Open made an unusual request: Can you give us a twirl?A twirl? the 20-year-old Canadian asked.A twirl, like a pirouette, here you go, coaxed her white-haired interviewer on Margaret Court Arena, urging the Wimbledon runner-up to show the crowd her outfit, a pink skirt and top with bright yellow straps.Somewhat uncomfortably, the No. 7-ranked player twirled. Then she laughed and buried her face in her hands.During her post-match news conference Bouchard spoke first about her dominating 6-0, 6-3 win over Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands in just 54 minutes. Then she addressed the twirl.It was very unexpected, said Bouchard, who is known for a steely determination, drive and ambition that propelled her from relative obscurity to stardom last year. She reached the semifinals at last years Australian and French Opens and the final at Wimbledon, becoming the first Canadian to appear in a Grand Slam final.I dont know, an old guy asking you to twirl. It was funny, she said.The 1.78-meter (5 foot-10) blonde is considered the next big star of the womens game. She broke into the top 10 for the first time last year after her success at Wimbbledon where she lost in the final to Petra Kvitova.dddddddddddd Her current ranking is the highest ever for a Canadian player.I try to get into an aggressive position as much as possible, she told a television interviewer after her match. Asked to reflect on her breakthroughs last year and her future goals, Bouchard replied, I dont think Ive achieved that much.Im proud, of course, of what I did last year, she said, but added, I want to win a Grand Slam. I want to get to No. 1 in the world. I did good last year but I want to do so much better.Bouchard is one of several players sporting this seasons colour theme of neon pink and yellow tennis outfits.No. 1 Serena Williams is wearing a somewhat similar dress, in yellow with pink straps but with a large chunk cut out of the back that she says is meant to draw attention to the beauty and the shape of the back.After Williams first-round win Tuesday on Margaret Court Arena, the Australian Opens second show court, the same presenter asked her to twirl for the crowd, which she often does anyway to thank the crowd after winning.Serena is good at her twirl. She does them all the time, Bouchard told the presenter after her awkward twirl and then added: Maybe I should cut a hole in my top tonight and show off my back like Serena. <a href="http://www.chinawholesalejerseysnfl.com/">Wholesale Jerseys</a> ' ' '