SAN ANTONIO VS. LOS ANGELES PHILADELPHIA VS. MILWAUKEE

Wednesday, May 30 Spurs never showed life in game, series Associated Press LOS ANGELES -- By early in the second quarter, the Staples Center crowd began chanting "Sweep! Sweep!" Tim Duncan and David Robinson were astonished by how hard and well the Lakers played all series. By that time, the San Antonio Spurs had assured themselves of such a fate in the Western Conference finals. Seldom has a good team looked as bad as the Spurs did in the final two games of their season -- a 111-72 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night, and a 111-82 embarrassment to complete the sweep Sunday. Of course, the streaking Lakers had something to do with San Antonio's ineptitude, although the Spurs seemed listless and uninspired from the start of Game 4. It was 6-0 before San Antonio scored, 11-2 after three minutes, 41-24 in the opening two minutes of the second quarter, 56-30 midway through the period, and 64-41 at halftime. Game over. The Spurs were gracious in defeat. "They played incredibly," said Spurs star Tim Duncan, held to 15 points after scoring only nine in Game 3. "They were better in the series, they always seemed to have an answer for us. "They've been rolling since the end of the season, and they kept on rolling through us." The Lakers have won 19 straight, including 11 in the playoffs. They have at least a week off before facing Milwaukee or Philadelphia in the NBA Finals. "We ran into a very good team," Antonio Daniels said. "You could see in their eyes, they think they're the best team in the NBA. "We had a great season, the best record in the NBA. It's very disappointing." No matter what kind of a roll the Lakers are on, the Spurs had plenty to be disappointed about. Outrebounded 63-35 in Game 3 despite the presence of 7-foot Twin Towers Duncan and David Robinson, the Spurs didn't show up on the backboards Sunday, either, being outrebounded 28-13 in the first half and 54-33 overall. "As a team, they did everything," Robinson said. "They beat us to loose balls, they got rebounds, they made shots, they were fantastic." The Spurs swept the Lakers in the conference semifinals two years ago, before beating Portland and New York to win their lone NBA title. Of course, that was a different Lakers team with a different coach, Kurt Rambis, at the helm. Phil Jackson and his seven championship rings as a head coach -- perhaps soon to be eight -- runs the show now. With Duncan on the sidelines due to injury, San Antonio was eliminated by Phoenix in the first round of the playoffs last year, and the Lakers won their first title since 1988 without having to contend with the Spurs. The Spurs entered this series with homecourt advantage by virtue of their NBA-best 58-24 regular-season record. However, they played like cellar-dwellers in the final two games after at least being competitive in the first two at the Alamodome. The Spurs were the best 3-point shooting team in the NBA this season, but horrendous from long range in this series, making 13-of-59 -- including 3-of-16 in Game 4. The Lakers, not known for their 3-point shooting, were 10-of-22 Sunday and 32-of-72 in the series. "They made plays and we didn't," Terry Porter said. "They had guys shoot at an unbelievably high level." Duncan and Robinson never got together. Duncan was terrific and Robinson not so hot in the first two games; Robinson was good and Duncan bad in Game 3; and neither was a factor in Game 4. Sean Elliott, a key ingredient in the Spurs' championship run two years ago, may have played his final NBA game Sunday. The 33-year-old Elliott, who underwent a kidney transplant less than two months after the Spurs won their title, has indicated retirement is a strong possibility. "After the season's over, I'm going to take a little vacation, clear my head and go from there," he said. Derek Anderson, San Antonio's second-leading scorer during the season, played only 12 minutes -- all in the first half -- and scored only two points. Anderson played Friday night for the first time since separating his right shoulder May 5 on a flagrant foul by Juwan Howard of Dallas, and had only two points in 29 minutes, missing all eight shots he attempted. The Spurs hoped he'd give them a boost. He didn't, but wasn't alone in failing to contribute in the last two games. Anderson admitted he wasn't at 100 percent physically, and said it would probably be two or three more weeks before he is. "I need rest," he said, rubbing his shoulder. "About 95 percent of the guys in the league would have played. I couldn't get loose at the start of the game." Anderson said he had spasms in his shoulder. "No way in the world Rick Fox can guard me," Anderson said, clarifying he would have been much more effective against Fox had he been at 100 percent physically. "I tried." Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories

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