San Antonio enjoyed their first taste of success in this final series in Game 3, rallying from a poor second quarter to pick up a 111-115 victory. Just as the visitors were looking like they were building a big lead, with a 24-36 buffer early in the second quarter, New York put together a rapid 14-4 run and then stormed into a 64-57 halftime lead with a 14-3 run to end the half. However, San Antonio’s defence clicked back into gear in the second half, limiting the hosts to just 47 points to close out a vital win and prove that they are well and truly in this series.
Nothing came easily for New York in the second half, especially on offence, where they were limited to a terrible 0.66 points per possession in the halfcourt and only generated seven points in transition. The pace that NY were able to play with in the first two games allowed them to generate offence before San Antonio’s defence was set, meaning the likes of Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges and Landry Shamet were able to get open for shots from their spots on the floor. However, with SA denying those transition opportunities in Game 3, the hosts’ backcourt really struggled, especially in the minutes with Wembanyama on the floor. Bridges was particularly poor, going 1/5 in his 29 minutes for just two points and five rebounds, and Shamet hit just one shot in his 23 minutes for three points and four boards. Brunson solid again from a scoring perspective, with 32 points on 57% TS%, but his five turnovers and five fouls minimised his impact. Jose Alvarado and Jordan Clarkson added some spice off the bench and OG Anunoby had another excellent game, with 28 points, five rebounds and two blocks, but Karl-Anthony Towns struggled to get going in this game, and his scoring could have been a real help for NY when things dried up in the second half.
Everything seemed to click for San Antonio as the game went on, producing what will be a confidence-boosting win. The game got tighter than what they would have wanted in the final minute, but a last-gasp three from Stephon Castle sealed the victory in another impressive display from SA’s young stars. Castle ended with 23 points, five rebounds, five assists and one block, while Wembanyama looked his most comfortable so far in the finals, with 32 points, eight rebounds, six assists, two steals and three blocks. Dylan Harper wasn’t all that efficient this time around but his 14 points, nine rebounds and four assists were important, as were Devin Vassell’s 11 points and four rebounds, as San Antonio’s role players finally stood up. Keldon Johnson hit his shots for seven points and one steal and Julian Champagnie went 3/7 from deep for 12 points and three dimes, while De’Aaron Fox scored a crucial bucket late on his way to 12 points and eight assists, but it again came on an inefficient shooting night.
San Antonio will be eager to repeat their defensive success in Game 4, but there were some significant outliers in this game that will make their offensive wins hard to repeat. For starters, they had 32 free throw attempts, including 24 in the second half — which was a big factor in limiting NY’s transition opportunities — and they committed just eight turnovers. That made for by far their lowest turnover rate of the postseason and their eighth-best of the season as a whole and I struggle to see them replicating that at Madison Square Garden, and I am picking a better shooting night from the hosts which will help them get the win in a huge Game 4.