Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals takes place on Wednesday as the series between the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder shifts back to Oklahoma City . The game is scheduled for an 9:00 pm start time and it will be televised live on TNT. Currently the odds have Oklahoma City favored by 4.5 points with the total sitting at 202 points for the contest.
Free Analysis: Less than a week ago the San Antonio Spurs were riding a 20-game winning streak. Today they are staring at elimination as they prepare to visit Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 6 of the Western Conference finals.The feisty Spurs used an 11-0 run late to climb back into Game 5. Stephen Jackson drained a three-pointer, Tim Duncan converted a pair of easy buckets before he and Ginobili hit a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to 101-99 with 1:51 left. In an attempt to slow the Thunder's momentum, San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich inserted sixth man Manu Ginobili into the starting lineup for the first time in the playoffs and was rewarded with a game-high 34 points Monday night. The move came with a cost, though. The Spurs' bench was outscored 42-22 and the team committed 21 turnovers, including five apiece by Ginobili and point guard Tony Parker, who has struggled with his shot and has only 12 assists against 11 turnovers since a 34-point effort in Game 2. San Antonio has made two valiant fourth-quarter comebacks in the past two games but it continues to be plagued by a second-quarter malaise, falling behind by double digits in the first half of the past three contests. The Spurs are 26-13 SU & 20-16-3 ATS on the road this year, while the Over is 25-13-1 in those road games. With three straight wins in the series, it's the Thunder who are a win away from capturing the franchise's first NBA Finals berth since 1996 when the then-Seattle SuperSonics fell to the Chicago Bulls in six games. "We have a great opportunity," Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks said on Tuesday. "We're on our home floor but that doesn't guarantee automatic victory. They're not going to give us the game. They're not just going to say, 'We've lost three in a row, we're going to give in.' James Harden netted 12 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter and nailed a game-deciding three-pointer in the final minute in Game 5 on Monday as OKC hung on for a 108-103 win over San Antonio in the Alamo City. Durant scored 22 of his 27 points in the second half while Russell Westbrook added 23 points and 12 assists for the Thunder. That trio has been very hard for the aging spurs to keep up with in the last 3 games of the series. Oklahoma City has yet to lose at home in the playoffs, going 7-0 SU at 4-3 ATS, while outscoring their opponents by 11 ppg in those 7 games.
Free Pick: The Spurs are done. They are tired and this aging team just hasn't been able to keep up with the younger and more athletic Thunder in the last 3 games. The Thunder got their offensive flow together in the last 3 games and it really has resulted in them winning the last 3 games. The Pace of the games have been more to the liking of OKC and their is no reason to believe that on their home floor they can't get that same pace again here. Defensively the Spurs are showing signs of tiring, as they have allowed 104.5 ppg in their last 6 games, compared to just 87.3 ppg allowed during their first 7 games of the post season. The Spurs can score, but this tiring team just won't come up with enough stops to keep this one close.
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