Game 1
The Bulls got off to a hot start, making their first six shots, and shooting 52% for the quarter. The Spurs dominated the glass behind the Twin Towers, but the Bulls' defense clamped down at the end of the quarter. Bill Wennington had a big three-point play, and Kukoc closed out the quarter with a triple at the buzzer. Bulls 34, Spurs 22 at the end of 1.
In the second quarter, the Bulls continued to pile on, scoring 16 consecutive points dating back to the first quarter, a run finally ended by a Mario Elie basket two minutes in, after the Spurs had gone scoreless for five minutes. The Bulls led by as many as 18 in the quarter, but Tim Duncan took over midway through, finishing the half with 22 points and 8 boards, and the Spurs roared back, closing all the way to within two points. Bulls 55, Spurs 53 at the half.
In the third, the Spurs threatened several times, but couldn't pull ahead, as the game turned into a mano-a-mano duel between Michael Jordan and Tim Duncan. The deficit remained at the end of the quarter. Bulls 76, Spurs 74 at the end of three.
In the fourth, the Bulls took an early advantage with Jordan, Pippen and Duncan all on the bench, but it took their toll, as the Spurs ran off 14 consecutive points to take an 11-point lead, their first lead since the score was 4-2. David Robinson keyed the run, scoring 8 of the 14 points and dominating Wennington on the glass. In the midst of this, we got MIRROR STEVE KERRS with just over 7 minutes to go, as Kerr was the only player on both teams, and the only non-Celtic to appear on four straight championship teams. Chicago Steve Kerr found Dennis Rodman inside, but Rodman couldn't handle the pass, and turned the ball over, making it a 9-point Spurs lead with 4 minutes to go, as the first unit finally made their way back in. However, Robinson once again scored on Longley, and an errant Rodman pass led to another basket for Duncan and pushed the lead to 13, their biggest of the game. Chicago Kerr found Pippen for three, then Rodman stole the ball and put back a missed three by Chicago Kerr. Longley came up with big blocks on Duncan and Robinson, leading to a Kukoc basket which cut the lead to six. However, Duncan came right back with a three-point play, forcing a Chicago timeout and effectively ending the game, as Kukoc missed two good looks on threes with 31 seconds to go, and the Spurs salted it away at the line.
FINAL SCORE: Spurs 103, Bulls 91
Spurs lead series 1-0
Duncan (SA) 14-25, 34 points, 12 reb, 6 blk
Jordan (CHI) 12-23, 27 points, 10 reb, 2 ast
SA: Robinson 24, Elliott 12, Jackson 10, Johnson 6, Elie 6, Rose 5, Kersey 4, Perdue 2, Kerr 0, Daniels 0, King DNP
CHI: Pippen 23, Kukoc 13, Longley 8, Wennington 7, Brown 4, Rodman 3, Buechler 2, Kerr 2, Harper 2, Simpkins/Burrell DNP
I'll try to do Game 2 tommorrow.
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