The defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs need a major road turnaround tonight for Game 7 in New Orleans if they want to have any shot at repeating as champs for the first time in franchise history; the Hornets are 4-point betting favorites (over/under: 182.5) on WagerWeb.com.
San Antonio hasn't been very competitive in the three games in New Orleans in this series - the Spurs have averaged 81.6 in their three road losses (shooting 10 percent worse than at home), never topping 84, while the Hornets have averaged 101.3 at home.
Both teams have feasted on home cooking in this series, with the home team winning by an average of 18 points. It is in line with what has been happening elsewhere in these NBA playoffs - in the second round, the home team is 22-2. The Hornets have yet to lose in six home playoff games during the first two rounds of the playoffs.
"No idea," point guard Tony Parker said of the team's struggles in New Orleans, "especially with this team and all the years of winning championships."
The two players to watch tonight might be Manu Ginobili of San Antonio and Peja Stojakovic of the Hornets.
In the Spurs' seven postseason wins, Ginobili is averaging 21.7 points. In their four losses, he's at 15.5. In the Hornets' seven wins, Peja has averaged 17.4 points, but has averaged just 10 in their four losses; he has made 22 3-pointers in those wins, and five in the losses.
Keep on eye on which team wins the third quarter tonight as well. The Hornets outscored the Spurs 29- 7, 36-18 and 28-11 in their three home wins and won by an average of 21.0 points, and San Antonio turned the tables to the tune of 29-22, 30-19 and 20-12 in its three victories at home that resulted by an average of 16.7 points.The Spurs have outscored the Hornets from behind the 3-point arc in five of the six games, but New Orleans has been much more efficient at home (22-for-42) than in San Antonio (9-for-35).
For the Spurs, it will be the third Game 7 in the past four seasons. They are 1-1 in them, having defeated Detroit in the decisive game of the 2005 NBA Finals and lost to Dallas in overtime in the finale of the 2006 Western Conference semifinals.
The Spurs never have won a Game 7 on the road.
"We'll see if we thrive on pressure after Monday's game. We still don't know," Ginobili said. "It's a great test for both teams. A lot of pressure, as I said before, and we're going to try to be the ones that respond to that pressure the best way."
Injured Hornets David West (bruised back) and Tyson Chandler (turf toe) are expected to play.
West was back at practice Saturday after being knocked out of Game 6 with a shot to his back.
"If he can get himself close to 100 percent for Game 7, then I think we're in good shape," Hornets coach Byron Scott said.
San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said his starting lineup for Game 6 would remain the same tonight: That means center Fabricio Oberto will be in the starting lineup for a second straight game, and Ginobili will start his fifth straight game at shooting guard.
Betting trends: Spurs are 3-14 ATS in their last 17 road games vs. a team with a winning home record. ... Hornets are 8-0 ATS in their last 8 games as a home favorite of 0.5-4.5. ... Over is 5-1-2 in Hornets' last 8 games as a home favorite of 0.5-4.5. ... Home team is 7-0 ATS in the last 7 meetings. ... Spurs are 0-4 ATS in the last 4 meetings in New Orleans.
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