Prizing:

1st Place: $25 Amazon gift card

2nd-5th Place: $10 Starbucks gift card

Overview:

On Thursday, May 11th, the San Antonio Spurs will be on the road to take on the Houston Rockets in game six of their Western Conference playoff series.  San Antonio has a (3-2) series advantage.

The Crowd:  

“The Crowd” is projecting a final score of Rockets 107.6 – Spurs 104.0 with an over/under of 211.6.

Statistics (2016-17 season):

Point differential: Spurs +7.2 (2^nd) > Rockets +5.7 (3^rd)

Points per game: Rockets 115.3 (2^nd) > Spurs 105.3 (14^th)

Points allowed per game: Spurs 98.1 (2^nd)> Rockets 109.6 (26^th)

Field Goal Percentage Offense: Spurs 46.9% (7^th) > Rockets 46.2% (12^th)

Three Point Percentage: Spurs 39.1% (1^st) > Rockets 35.7% (15^th)

Field Goal Percentage Defense: Spurs 44.3 (tied for 3^rd) > Rockets 46.3% (23^rd)

Turnovers committed per game: Spurs 12.9 (tied for 11^th) > Rockets 14.5 (tied for 23^rd)

Turnovers forced per game: Rockets 14.4 (7^th) > Spurs 13.8 (tied for 12^th)

Rebounds per game: Rockets 44.4 (tied for 7^th) > Spurs 43.9 (tied for 10^th)

Assists per game: Rockets 25.2 (tied for 3^rd) > Spurs 23.8 (tied for 7^th)

Summary:

San Antonio now holds a (3-2) series advantage after winning game five 110-107 in overtime.  The Spurs were without their starting point guard Tony Parker who is out for the season with a quad injury.  Parker was a key contributor in the playoffs where he was averaging 15.9 points on 52.6% shooting and 3.1 assists per game.  Patty Mills stepped up and contributed 20 points in Parker’s absence.  Manu Ginobili was huge down the stretch with 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists.

One big concern for the Spurs is their star Kawhi Leonard suffering an ankle injury late in the game and not returning.  The Rockets only played seven players and appeared completely exhausted with sloppy overtime possessions.  James Harden had 33 points and 10 assists but turned the ball over 9 times.  The Rockets, once lauded for their depth, really missed Nene and need more players to step up and contribute meaningful minutes.  With the uncertainty surrounding the health of Leonard, I think the Rockets will even the series at home.

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