Spurs' repeat hopes in danger

5/14/2008 4:19 PM

By ELIZABETH WHITE
Associated Press Writer

SAN ANTONIO (AP) - Just as Tim Duncan and the San Antonio Spurs appeared to be hitting their stride and gaining momentum for a berth in the Western Conference finals, they are down again, their march toward consecutive NBA titles very much in doubt.

The defending champions face elimination at the hands of the upstart New Orleans Hornets, who have a 3-2 lead in the conference semifinals, when they play Game 6 on Thursday.

``The best opportunity for us is really tomorrow (Thursday). We've got to look at it that way,'' Hornets coach Byron Scott said. ``We've got a chance to close out the defending champions. Obviously we know it's going to be a very, very tough game to do that, especially in San Antonio.''

After starting the series in an 0-2 hole against Chris Paul and the Hornets, the Spurs stormed back with home wins in Games 3 and 4. In Game 4 in particular, they were difficult to counter on either end of the court. Duncan had his best game of the series and the Hornets struggled throughout.

Paul insisted after each game in San Antonio that it was not time for his team to panic, but the Spurs seemed to be picking up speed and getting ready to send the youthful Hornets home to try again next year.

Now, after a decisive Game 5 loss Tuesday night in New Orleans, the Spurs are the ones who may be panicking, though their veteran status and deep playoff experience are just the kind of assets that could keep them cool and confident in Game 6.

``The bottom line is that the better team wins in a seven-game series,'' Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. ``I've always said that. So whoever wins the series it will be because they're the better team.''

The Spurs took the day off Wednesday. The Hornets talked about how to maintain the energy they get from their home crowd while playing on the road in hostile territory.

``That's something we're going to talk about probably all day and before the game tomorrow,'' Paul said. ``When you make shots and stuff like that, it helps a lot, but we just got to find some way somehow.''

Paul helped in Game 5, but it was David West who carried the Hornets to victory with career playoff highs of 38 points, 14 rebounds and five blocked shots.

So far, homecourt teams have been all-but unstoppable in the conference semifinals. Neither the Hornets nor Spurs has lost at home this postseason.

That bodes well for the Spurs to take Game 6, but it also makes it look good for the Hornets to claim the winner-take-all Game 7 in New Orleans, if necessary.

The Hornets said they're not relying on home court for the series win.

``We can't relax and say, 'All right, we'll wait to beat them when we come back here,''' Paul said. ``We need to win tomorrow (Thursday).''

Both teams have been dominant at home, despite the closeness of the series. Every game has been won by double digits, with the biggest margin being the Hornets' 101-79 Game 5 win.

West and New Orleans center Tyson Chandler are the only question marks for Thursday. West was playing with a back injury and Chandler has a bruised left foot. Scott said he expects both to play.

``I don't know if they'll both be 100 percent but I think they'll definitely be ready to play the game,'' Scott said. ``Both of them understand the importance of this game, having a chance to close out a great team like this, so again we want to try to seize that opportunity.''

San Antonio has never been able to get back-to-back titles. In each of the Spurs' last three title defenses following the 1999, 2003 and 2005 seasons, they were eliminated in the conference semifinals or earlier.

A repeat this year would give them five titles in 10 seasons and secure their place among NBA dynasties, if they haven't already.

But they'll first have to get by the Hornets, an increasingly difficult task against a team that hopes to eliminate the champs and carry their own historic season into the conference finals.

``We know their backs are against the wall and they're going to come at us with everything they got,'' Scott said.

AP Sports Writer Brett Martel in New Orleans contributed to this report.