Tim Duncan is searching for his 5th championship ring while Kevin Durant, his first.

The 2012 Western Conference Finals meeting feature Duncan’s San Antonio Spurs and Durant’s Oklahoma City Thunder. One of the best power forwards in NBA history against one of the best young players and MVP candidates in the game today.

The Spurs swept their Conference Semifinals Round opponent, the Los Angeles Clippers 4-0 while the Thunder get the 4-1 series win over the Los Angeles Lakers.

NOTES:

1. The Spurs advanced to the Western Conference finals since 2007 during their last championship run while the Thunder, the first time since the franchise moved from Seattle in 2008.

2. The Spurs  entered the 2012NBA Playoffs as the #1 seed in the Western Conference while the Thunder is #2.

3. In the regular season, the Spurs defeated the Thunder 2 times out of 3 meetings.

4. The Spurs  is led by the trio of Tim Duncan (15.4 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 1.5 bpg), Tony Parker (18.3 ppg, 7.7 apg, 1.0 spg) and Manu Ginobili (12.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 4.4 apg)

5. The Thunder is led by the by the trio of Kevin Durant (28.0 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 3.5 apg), Russell Westbrook (23.6 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 5.5 apg) and 6th Man of the Year James Harden (16.8 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 3.7 apg)

SCHEDULE: Thunder won series 4-2

(All games will appear on TNT)

Game 1 – Sunday, May 27: Oklahoma City at San Antonio, 8:30 p.m. Spurs win 101-98
Game 2 – Tuesday, May 29: Oklahoma City at San Antonio, 9:00 p.m. Spurs win 120-111
Game 3 – Thursday, May 31: San Antonio at Oklahoma City, 9:00 p.m. Thunder win 102-82
Game 4 – Saturday, June 2: San Antonio at Oklahoma City, 8:30 p.m. Thunder win 109-103
Game 5* – Monday, June 4: Oklahoma City at San Antonio, 9:00 p.m. Thunder win 108-103
Game 6* – Wednesday, June 6: San Antonio at Oklahoma City, 9:00 p.m. Thunder win 107-99

RECAP:

I will post recaps after every game

Game 1

Manu Ginobili scored 26 points and the San Antonio Spurs won their 19th in a row to tie the NBA record for longest winning streak kept alive in the playoffs, beating the Oklahoma City Thunder 101-98 to open the Western Conference finals on Sunday night.

Obeying orders snarled by coach Gregg Popovich in a fourth-quarter timeout to play “nasty,” the Spurs erased a nine-point deficit that stunned the Thunder, who had looked on their way to finally kicking the perception that they’re the underdog.

Kevin Durant led the Thunder with 27 points. Russell Westbrook had 17.

The 2001 Lakers are the only other team to carry a winning streak this long in the playoffs—and they did so on their way to a championship.

Game 2

Tony Parker scored 34 points, Manu Ginobili added 20 and the Spurs stayed perfect in the playoffs with a 120-111 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 2 on Tuesday night.

The Spurs set an NBA record with their 20th consecutive victory bridging the regular season and the playoffs. They came in sharing the longest such streak with the 2000-01 Lakers, who won 19 straight before losing to Philadelphia in the first game of the finals.

Parker finished with eight of the Spurs’ 27 assists, and San Antonio went 11 for 26 from 3-point range. The Spurs went only 10-for-23 from the field in the fourth quarter and still shot 55 percent for the game.

Kevin Durant had 31 points and James Harden rebounded from a rough Game 1 to score 30 for the Thunder, who have lost two straight for the first time since early April. Oklahoma City dropped to 15-4 in games after losses this season.

Game 3

Kevin Durant scored 22 points, Sefolosha set playoff career-bests with 19 points and six steals, and the Thunder snapped San Antonio’s 20-game winning streak by beating the Spurs 102-82.

The Thunder’s fears of falling into a historically insurmountable 3-0 series deficit faded quickly as Sefolosha got four steals to power an 8-0 Oklahoma City run in the first 3 minutes and set the tone for San Antonio’s worst offensive outing of the season.

Parker and Stephen Jackson led the Spurs with 16 points apiece. Tim Duncan had 11 points on 5-for-15 shooting, taking 11 of San Antonio’s first 25 shots as the offense went through the All-Star center instead of Parker.

Game 4

Kevin Durant scored 18 of his 36 points in a scintillating final 7 minutes, Serge Ibaka added a career-high 26 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder evened the Western Conference finals at two games apiece by beating the San Antonio Spurs 109-103 Saturday night.

After seeing his team’s 15-point lead dwindle to four, Durant took over midway through the fourth quarter by scoring all 16 of the Thunder’s points during a span of just over 5 minutes to keep the Spurs at bay.

With All-Star teammate Russell Westbrook limited to seven points, Durant did almost all of the damage late to send the series back to San Antonio all square for Game 5 on Monday night.

Tim Duncan had 21 points for San Antonio, which had won 20 in a row before losing Game 3.

Game 5

Durant scored 27 points and the Thunder beat the Spurs 108-103 in Game 5, moving within a victory of a series knockout and the conference title after beating San Antonio for the third time in five days.

Russell Westbrook added 23 and the Thunder took a 3-2 lead in a wildly entertaining series. Looking invincible while carrying a 20-game winning streak a week ago – the fourth-longest in NBA history – the Spurs have lost three straight and are on the verge of a stunning collapse.

Manu Ginobili scored 34 in a smashing return to the starting lineup, and the switch showed just how much Spurs coach Gregg Popovich knew his team might be in trouble.

Game 6

Durant had 34 points and 14 rebounds while playing all of regulation for the first time all season, and the Thunder claimed a spot in the NBA finals by beating the San Antonio Spurs 107-99 on Wednesday night.

Russell Westbrook added 25 points for the Thunder, who trailed Game 6 of the Western Conference finals by 18 in the first half and erased a 15-point halftime deficit before pulling ahead to stay in the fourth.

Tony Parker had 29 points and 12 assists for San Antonio, but only eight of the points and two assists came in the second half.

Tim Duncan chipped in 25 points and 14 rebounds, and Stephen Jackson scored 23 as San Antonio lost its fourth straight after becoming only the fourth team in NBA history to win 20 games in a row.

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Tags: 2012 NBA playoffs, oklahoma city thunder, san antonio spurs