Hornets blow golden opportunity, fail to show up for Game 6
"Definitely, lost (my) composure a little bit," West said. "It was frustrating how the game was turning."
It turned because the Spurs played breezily, as if they were leading this series 3-0. Manu Ginobili hit six 3-pointers en route to his 25 points. Ime Udoka came off the bench for 13 points in 21 minutes. Most startling, Tim Duncan made six of his eight free throws. He finished with 20 points, 15 rebounds and six assists.
Almost every single Hornet, on the other hand, played frantically. Paul and West were shells of themselves. Peja Stojakovic scored nine points in a three-minute stretch to open the game -- and scored four points in the other 45 minutes. And the only Hornet who defended worse than Stojakovic was Morris Peterson, who was burned for many of Ginobili's and Udoka's nine combined 3-pointers.
Don't say the Hornets didn't want Game 6, though. They wanted it too much. Despite having Game 7 at home as an insurance policy, Chandler sat in the New Orleans locker room an hour before Game 6 and made Thursday sound like a do-or-die affair.
"To be honest with you, I don't even recognize Game 7," he said. "We have a great opportunity here, and we have to seize this moment."
Instead they seized -- and squeezed -- their own throats. Even coach Byron Scott. It was Scott who played Chandler and West for all 36 minutes of the first three quarters even though neither had practiced at full speed Wednesday after suffering Game 5 injuries. As for Paul, he received a break in those first 36 minutes -- for all of three seconds.
By the fourth quarter of Game 6, the exhausted Paul wasn't bringing the ball up the court, West reinjured his back after being screened from behind by Horry, and Chandler was having to soak his sore left foot in a bucket of ice. And his right foot. And both knees.
The Hornets left the AT&T Center a beaten-up basketball team. They have three days to heal physically before Monday's Game 7, but the mental pain won't mend so easily.
New Orleans poured everything it had into Game 6. And had absolutely no chance.
How do you recover from that?
