Second Coming: A SuperSonics Return

[trekfan]

Quote: Originally Posted by studbucket

Ouch man. Upped to HOF (aka CPU cheat code mode) or just a rough game?

^Rough game. I don't play HOF because it's CPU cheat mode, but I just couldn't stop them to save my life this game. Out of all the teams in the NBA I play, the Thunder are by far the ones that give me the most trouble. Hoping the sim engine gives me a break in Game 2, because if I go into Game 3 down 2-0, I might as well pack it up.

[trekfan]

WHEW. That was closer than most of us would have liked, but it's to be expected when playing the Thunder at home. After the Sonics won Game 2 in convincing fashion, 103-90, the series was all tied up heading back to the Thunder's home court. "Loud City" as they like to call themselves, was every bit as loud as you'd expect for a playoff game against a hated rival.

Clay Bennett, as has been the case since Seattle's return to the NBA, was sitting in the luxury suite above, watching the action on the floor below, and what he saw must have pleased him early on. In the first, the Sonics and Thunder came out trading blows, each team trading the lead back and forth, and the Thunder draining shots from deep. Every time it looked like Seattle was going to claw out a lead, OKC drained a dagger from behind the arc and took the lead back or evened things out.

Still, at the end of one, the Sonics lead by one. That lead would grow to 10-points midway through the second quarter thanks to hot shooting from one Bojan Bogdanovic. Bogdog was lights out from the field (and not half-bad on defense, either) and he helped Seattle take a six-point lead into halftime.

In the third, Bogdog again saw heavy minutes as Lionel Hollins let him shoot till he started missing -- which didn't really happen till midway through the third, at one point making eight straight buckets. Bogdog was straight-fire tonight and OKC had no answer for him. But, all streaks have to come to an end and Bogdog's did, so Hollins went back to RHJ. The game became about OKC trying to shoot their way back into it -- and they did a few times.

By the time the fourth quarter arrived, OKC's shots were hitting again and Seattle was perfectly willing to let them have those shots as long as they were able to get theirs inside. And they did -- Seattle punished OKC in the paint and the Thunder had no recourse but to foul. Durant himself picked up his fifth foul midway through the quarter and the Sonics were foaming at the mouth to get him to foul out.

So they attacked, and attacked, and attacked. The Thunder gamely fouled with anyone other than Durant, sicking Enes Kanter and Steven Adams on a few of the Sonics players, but the Sonics lead held. The Thunder would hit a triple and Seattle would calmly go up the court, dive inside, and find the open man for a bucket. The Thunder fans must have felt like they were watching a repeat of last year's series as the Sonics seemed unfazed by the added pressure.

The Thunder players weren't so calm. As the fourth came to an end, Cameron Payne and Enes Kanter both got to the line on back-to-back possessions but couldn't make Seattle pay; Payne missed both his shots, Kanter hit only one, and the Sonics maintained a three-point lead with less than a minute to go. The Thunder would foul, first RHJ (he split his free throws), then hustle up to court for a shot -- a shot which they missed, letting the rebound go to Brandon Jennings. Jennings would calmly sink all his free throw shots, netting the Sonics a six-point lead.

The Thunder were able to drain a wide-open corner two from Westbrook with less than 30 seconds to go, narrowing the gap to four points, but then the Sonics quickly inbounded the ball to RHJ, who drive headlong towards the hoop and was promptly fouled by Durant. Durant wasn't the only Thunder around RHJ but he made the most contact and was called for the foul, ending his night with less than 26 seconds left on the clock.

And with Durant out, so went the Thunder's chances at the game.

Sonics lead 2-1. Another win in OKC and the Thunder have to face elimination in Seattle for Game 5.

Go Sonics.

[trekfan]

Game 4 should have been a Sonics win, and it still stings. A late Durant three proved the difference in that one, giving the Thunder a 97-94 win in OKC.

But Game 5 was back on Seattle's turf and the PAC was roaring from beginning to end. The Thunder started out well enough early in the first, but soon found they had a major problem: Kevin Durant was missing his shots. Easy ones, too.

Durant's struggles were many and stark in the first half. He scored only nine points the entire half, blanketed by RHJ, who himself was scoring at will inside against anyone the Thunder put on him. RHJ was an absolute beast and, I kid you not, didn't miss a single shot the entire game.

He went a perfect 13-of-13 from the field, finishing with 26 points, six boards, and only a single foul. That was the story of the game, primarily, as RHJ dominated and the Sonics followed him. He got help, of course, from his bellow Break Brother (trademarked!) Lance Stephenson, who himself was streaking in the first half.

The Sonics slowly began to crawl away in the third quarter as Brandon Jennings didn't even really bother to try and shoot -- he just passed. Jennings knew well enough to not force his shot, a lesson he's had to relearn a few times this season, and he kept his teammates in the flow of the game. That passing was contagious and there's no doubting Jennings steady hand contributed to Seattle's win. (His six turnovers were concerning, but many of those came early, so it's forgivable.)

The fourth is where the fireworks really started. The Thunder finally got Kevin Durant to start knocking down shots and Duran just kept knocking them down -- the Thunder's offense ran through him almost exclusively and the MVP made the Sonics pay repeatedly (he finished with 28 points), but he couldn't get his deep shot to fall. The Thunder largely were unable to do anything from deep, only 4-of-13 as a team from behind the arc.

But they kept shooting it and the Sonics kept letting them. That was the difference in the game and Durant's cold shooting in the first half. If KD hits a few more shots in the first quarter, if the Thunder play more inside, we might have a different result.

The Sonics now lead 3-2 heading back to Oklahoma City. Closing out the the Thunder, on the road, will be monumentally difficult, but they can do it. If not, Game 7 will be back at the PAC and it will be the first Game 7 in the PAC's history.

Go Sonics.

[AC]

66% from the field, wow

[trekfan]

Quote: Originally Posted by AC

66% from the field, wow

When I get going, man, that pick and roll is lethal.

Also, the Raptors made the Finals. Don't ask me how.

[AC]

Well now my requests to turn up the difficulty are going to seem disingenuous! Good thing I can be as transparent as I want about wanting you to play every game of the finals now, though

[trekfan]

Quote: Originally Posted by AC

Well now my requests to turn up the difficulty are going to seem disingenuous! Good thing I can be as transparent as I want about wanting you to play every game of the finals now, though

Assuming I make it. I lost Game 6 in the sim, so I'm playing Game 7 now.

We'll see who comes out on top in this ultra-heated affair.

[trekfan]

It's finally done. No, this isn't Lord of the Rings, but it sure felt like a journey that took three movies to complete. The Sonics beat the Thunder, 115-100, in a dominating home win. It was more than I expected, especially after the Sonics fell short in OT in their Game 6 loss (that 124-121 loss was hard to take).

Game 6 was exhausting for both teams, but Game 7 was thankfully two after. Both teams came out looking fresh, but only one drained everything it shot: the Sonics. Seattle came out hot and just couldn't really miss. The biggest factor early, and all game, was Lance Stephenson. Good Lance once again showed up and Good Lance flirted with a triple-double (he finished with 20 points, seven boards, and eight dimes) and Good Lance was a monster in the transition game.

He and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson made their impact on defense and on the fast break. The Thunder couldn't keep up as their triples weren't enough to overcome the Sonics lead (they went 8-of-18 for the day). Largely to do with this game's lopsided score was the Sonics bench mob, who scored 41 points (not a typo) against the Thunder's 19.

And even more largely to do with this win was the lack of Kevin Durant. Durant was missing bunnies out there and he looked tired -- KD went 8-of-18 from the field, 2-of-6 from deep, and affected the game in lots of ways (finishing with 19 points, eight boards, and six dimes) but the Thunder needed him to score more to win.

Westbrook was scoring, left and right. He went for 28 points (and only five assists) and he got help from Ibaka and Morrow (both finishing with 17 points each) but Kanter was a missing man out there, and the Thunder's bench was woeful.

Seattle grabbed the lead and was up at the half by 17 points. They extended that lead to 20 points at the beginning of the fourth, then watched the Thunder trim that lead down to 12 before resuming the bludgeoning, grinding style that got them here. Somewhere, Memphis Grizzlies fans are holding up their lighters in a sign of solidarity as their grit-and-grind style eliminated a long-time foe for them.

For the Sonics, this victory was the hardest fought one of the entire year and in their short history as a resurrected franchise. They now move on to face the Toronto Raptors (say what?!) in the first international NBA Finals in league history.

What a win. Go Sonics.