Silver State Warriors vs. S. A. Spurs: Game 5 Get, Highlights and Analysis.

A San Antonio Spurs are one win far from advancing to the Western Conference Finals carrying out a convincing 109-91 victory over the Golden State Warriors Wed night.

Tony Parker led the best way for the Spurs using 25 points and 10 provides help on 9-of-16 shooting. Tim Duncan wasn't capable to (completely) erase his picture taking woes, but finished using a double-double as well, with 14 points with 5-of-13 shooting to go along with 11 rebounds.

Kawhi Leonard and Danny Efficient also came up big for any Spurs. Leonard finished along with 17 points and 6 rebounds, and Green chipped around 16 points of their own.

Harrison Barnes led that Warriors with 25 tips on 10-of-18 shooting from the field. He was certainly one of just three Warriors players who scored in increase figures. Jarrett Jack experienced 20 points and Carl Landry tallied 06.

Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson possessed a night to leave behind, though. Curry played 35 minutes with an ailing ankle and went for just nine points and 8 assists on 4-of-14 picture taking. Thompson fared even even worse, going just 2-of-8 from the floor for four items.

That they hit on 72. 2 percent on their shots in the to begin with first quarter (13-of-18) on the way to a 37-point span. I mean seriously, it was eventually mesmerizing.

Led by Harrison Barnes' nine points inside the opening period, the Warriors managed to notch 28 points within their own. They knocked lower 52. 4 percent of their shots overall and journeyed 3-of-6 from downtown.

Curry's 1-of-6 showing didn't further the causal agent, however. He had a few assists, including a nice half-court lob to Tim Bogut, but his erratic picture taking helped dig the Warriors to a nine-point hole.

Fortunately designed for Golden State, San Antonio didn't fare also in the second 1 fourth. Gregg Popovich's crew adopted up their 72. 2 percent display within the first quarter with a 33. 3 percent snap leading into halftime.

The Warriors arrange 23 points in the 2nd, cutting the lead to three while they headed into the locker room. Barnes led all scorers using 15 points, while this Spurs were led just by Tim Duncan, who after a hot start, finished a half with 10 items on just 3-of-9 shooting.

Meanwhile, Golden State's Little water Brothers (Curry and Klay Thompson), combined for under 4-of-16 shooting through the initial two quarters. With their two most lethal shooters desperate for the bottom of online, the Warriors were beyond fortunate that going barefoot was just a one-possession performance.

San Antonio released gunning in the minute half, though. The Spurs outscored the Warriors 17-9 in the first half of the the third quarter, pushing their trigger 11. Another surge brought the Warriors back in within six, but the Spurs finished strong and took an 11-point lead into the fourth.

Nothing appeared to evolve early in the finalized period either. The Spurs increased their trigger 14 and Curry's ankle forced him to the bench. But the Players weren't done pressing, perhaps without Curry. They cut the end up in eight midway through your fourth.

The Spurs responded by having a mini-run of their possess, bringing their lead back to 11 inside of six minutes to play. Jackson was then forced to send Curry and Andrew Bogut the government financial aid the game, but they will weren't enough.

Though the Warriors got off to your less-than-desirable start, it always pays to look at the bright side, for example the fact an injured David Lee as well as the liability known as Richard Jefferson didn't lead Senior State toward self-destruction fast.

It was quite the other actually. Down by nine entering the other, Golden State fought oh no- cut the lead, in no small part because of Mark Jackson's motivational pep talks in team huddles.

We are not familiar with for sure what they said, but it's only right to assume his talks made up of some proverb-like sentiments.

Knutson likely wasn't just saying to his players, as well. Word has it there would be a certain hip-hop mogul in need of some perspective sitting close Warriors bench.

Lil Wayne wasn't the only one who should have become eavesdropping on Jackson's inspirational, still suitable-for-children soliloquies.

Coach Pop is known for speaking his mind, and Game 5 had been no exception, as he may just be heard yelling expletives at Tony Parker over the third quarter.

Though that language was questionable, your message was clear and additionally well received. San Antonio outscored Golden State 29-21 in the third.

Speaking of "receiving, " Ginobili may be getting a phone call from the league offices after blatantly flopping midway with the third quarter. And I'm lost "But I have a bald spot" are going to be an effective enough defense to flee a fine.

Through two quarters, it also became very clear that Curry wouldn't be capable of escape the wrath his sore ankle wished to induce.

While it hasn't been enough, Barnes attempted to do his best Curry impression, scoring 25 points of her own and making NBA history along the way.

Not even a terrific performance from Barnes could stop the Spurs from pulling away inside fourth quarter, though. And while I say "pulled gone, " I mean certainly pulled away. There was a Tracy McGrady sighting.

The two of these teams now head back to Oakland, where the Warriors can look to stave off elimination and force a sport 7 Thursday night, although Spurs will hope to earn yet one more bid to the Western Conference Finals.

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Eagles RB McCoy Says Allegations Against Him False.

LeSean McCoy is adamant he never assaulted a woman for the party bus back around December and claims his accuser is actually trying to shake him down for most cash, TMZ. com records.

McCoy's lawyer, Andrew N. Smith said, "The allegations against LeSean McCoy can be completely, unequivocally false. "

Brenard continues, "There are no legal charges pending [against McCoy] and no probable cause was at any time found. "

As previously reported, a woman using the alias "Mary Roe" filed a lawsuit against the Philadelphia Eagles music artist claiming she was attacked and badly injured on McCoy's party bus back December after she objected to being sprayed with water.

McCoy's attorney at law says, "This is sadly an endeavor to extract money and LeSean will vigorously defend any try and collect money through a personal injury claim. "

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Bulls vs. Heat Game 5: Live Score, Highlights and Analysis

It could be elimination night in the conference semifinals and the Miami Heat start off the evening by attempting to close out the Chicago Bulls in Game 5.

The Heat have completely locked down Chicago defensively, and despite the Bulls' occasional attempts to turn the last three games into brawls, Miami has been able to put together a solid offensive attack. Each game has been decided by double-digit points.

With injuries decimating Chicago and the return of Derrick Rose completely unlikely at this point, it seems that the Bulls are going to have to continue relying on a seven-player rotation for the fifth game of this series.

Bulls swingman Jimmy Butler has hardly had a rest in the first four games of the series. Head coach Tom Thibodeau has generally not dug deep into the bench until the game gets way out of hand.

Going into Game 5, Chicago is going to have to flash back to what worked in Game 1. Unfortunately, that would mean the Heat struggling mightily on the offensive end.

Expect another struggle between two teams that seem to genuinely dislike each other. The outcome could be anything from a nail-biter to a complete blowout for Miami.

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Victor Oladipo NBA Intermix 2013: Measurements, Analysis together with Draft Projection.

One of the top shooting guards establish to enter the 2013 NBA write, Victor Oladipo opted not to participate at the 2013 NBA Draw up Scouting Combine in Chi town on Thursday, according to be able to Yahoo! Sports' Jeff Rabjohns:

The former Indiana star could have his height measured, however, reportedly coming just using over 6'4", meaning he'll be an undersized 2-guard with the next level (via CBSSports. com's Jeff Goodman):

Most NBA draft scouts consider the 21-year-old guard to become a Top 10 selection with this June's draft, so it's hard to take responsibility Oladipo for sitting out within the advice of his broker.

A National Player in the Year candidate last season to your top-ranked Hoosiers, Oladipo averaged 13. 6 items, 6. 3 rebounds, two. 1 assists and some. 2 steals per gameplay while shooting 60 percent in the field and 44 percentage from beyond the arc.

Oladipo's spectacular play on both ends within the floor last year offers earned him comparisons to help you Miami Heat superstar Dwyane Wade and the Houston Rockets' James Solidify.

While there are topic marks about Oladipo's size and ability relating to the offensive end, there's no denying his athleticism and ability to lock down opponents on the defensive end of the floor. A physical, tough-minded defend, the Upper Marlboro, M . d .., native also boasts some sort of unrivaled motor.

Oladipo has nothing left to convince NBA scouts and standard managers. He's improved every single season since his freshman 12 months at Indiana and, quite frankly, the tape speaks with regard to itself.

Where Oladipo lands this summer will depend on how the NBA draft lottery shapes from Tuesday night, but assuming the percentages sustain, look for Oladipo to discover going somewhere around Certainly no. 5 overall.

Some experts, including ESPN's Chad Ford (membership required) currently have Oladipo going No. 4 overall for the Phoenix Suns.

Phoenix is likely to love to get its mitts Oladipo with its lottery pick come early july. After all, the Suns lack at the very top perimeter defender and ranked 26th in the NBA last season in points allowed (101. 6 a game).

Given Oladipo's versatility and capacity to excel on both ends with the court, it wouldn't be in any way surprising to see him go somewhere inside Top Five this May.

While many will come to be disappointed that Oladipo didn't suit up for any workouts at the unite, others will say he was recommended that you sit out and preserve his high draft stock heading into the summer.

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Big Boys vs. Gunner Guards: Who Rules the NBA in 2013 Playoffs?

If you're building an NBA team designed to succeed in the 2013 playoffs, do you go with the big boys or the gunner guards?

Most teams in the history of the Association haven't had the luxury of employing both fundamentally different sets, which makes determining the superior group an important endeavor. Some squads go to work with a traditional big man wreaking havoc in the paint, while others are content to let fly from outside.

Both strategies can certainly work, especially if you merge the narrower "gunner guards" idea with the broader small-ball ideals.

The Memphis Grizzlies are the best example of a team that thrives because of its presence in the paint. Marc Gasol is a true seven-footer, even if he possesses more versatility than physicality down low, and Zach Randolph is a tough-as-nails power forward.

Behind the two behemoths in the middle, the Grizz have advanced to the Western Conference Finals. Of course, they've had help from Mike Conley, Tony Allen and a number of other smaller players, but it's the big guys who make things go.

Each of Memphis' four most-used lineups during the postseason involve both Gasol and Z-Bo. The next three feature Darrell Arthur playing with one of the two aforementioned studs.

In fact, the first lineup that only utilizes one true big man is the one using Mike Conley, Tony Allen, Quincy Pondexter, Tayshaun Prince and Marc Gasol. This group has played only eight total minutes together during the series against the Los Angeles Clippers and Oklahoma City Thunder.

Small ball simply doesn't exist in Memphis. And it's not used too frequently by the team's opponents in the Western Conference Finals: the San Antonio Spurs.

As Sports Illustrated's Rob Mahoney pointed out, Gregg Popovich was extremely hesitant to play small ball during the regular season because it would have worn out Tim Duncan. But thanks to the growth of Kawhi Leonard, the Spurs are able to occasionally go small and leave the breakout San Diego State product as the second-biggest man out on the court.

In particular, Leonard has rebounded far better than most players his size, showing off good instincts and incredible strength. You can see those skills manifest themselves in these three defensive rebounds, but pay close attention to him out-muscling Festus Ezeli for the final board.

The most-used lineup in which Leonard plays the 4 sees Popovich use Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, Danny Green, Leonard and Tim Duncan. It's been used for 38 minutes during the postseason, making it the second-most common lineup.

In each of the three other lineups that San Antonio has used for more than 30 minutes—including the No. 1 lineup, which has 83 minutes of action—Leonard lines up at small forward. In fact, that's his position in six of his eight most-used groupings.

The Spurs are occasionally going small, but that's not their primary strategy. Using the big boys is still the most common decision.

Out West, there were most assuredly a few teams that employed the guard-first stratagems. Mark Jackson's Splash Brothers come to mind immediately, as does the Denver Nuggets' tendency to play Andre Miller and Ty Lawson together.

The Houston Rockets loved going small and surrounding Omer Asik with a bevy of shooters, and Eric Bledsoe and Chris Paul were quite difficult to stop at the same time when Vinny Del Negro used a two-point-guard lineup.

It's telling that the two teams competing for a berth in the 2013 NBA Finals are ones that use big guys first and foremost.

The Miami Heat are clearly the class of the conference, and they've adopted a smaller lineup. It's one that helped win a championship in 2012, but it doesn't exactly feature gunner guards.

Instead, Miami goes small by having LeBron James play power forward rather than his more natural spot at small forward. James is big and physical enough to handle opposing 4s, and his developing postgame allows him to fill the more traditional big-man role on offense as well.

With Chris Bosh and center and James at power forward, the Heat are undoubtedly using a small lineup quite successfully. However, they've still recognized the necessity to match up against big units.

Chris Andersen's ability to run the court and play defense against opposing bigs gives Miami the necessary size to match up against a bigger team.

Birdman gives Miami the ability to match up against the big boys because he can capably defend opposing centers while letting Bosh and LeBron slide over a spot to their more natural positions in the lineup. Expect to see this quite often if the Heat have to worry about Roy Hibbert in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Hibbert and David West definitely count as big boys for the Indiana Pacers, and Frank Vogel doesn't really like to go small. This would be different if he had a healthy Danny Granger at his disposal, but that's not the case.

Indiana's primary backup bigs are Ian Mahinmi and Tyler Hansbrough. Usually you see either Hibbert or Mahinmi line up at center, and they're typically joined by West or Hansbrough at power forward.

In fact, the most-used five-man squad without two of the four aforementioned frontcourt players features D.J. Augustin, Gerald Green, Paul George, Jeff Pendergraph and Tyler Hansbrough. During the postseason, that group has played a grand total of eight minutes together.

There's no small ball in Indiana, but that's one of the few exceptions in the Eastern Conference. Even the Brooklyn Nets liked to occasionally go small by having Gerald Wallace play power forward.

The New York Knicks use a similar strategy to the one employed by the Miami Heat. They often shift Carmelo Anthony to the 4 and then bring on an extra backcourt member. Iman Shumpert, for example, tends to play minutes at small forward.

Just as is the case with the Western Conference, there is no hard-and-fast rule in the East. The best team happens to play small ball a lot, but even the Heat rely on the big boys at some point.

As for the Association as a whole, although guards like Stephen Curry, Tony Parker, Deron Williams, Chris Paul and Nate Robinson tend to steal the headlines, the bigs are the ones who have been owning this postseason in particular.

Of the five remaining teams, three rely predominantly on their big men: the Memphis Grizzlies, San Antonio Spurs and Indiana Pacers. The other two—the Miami Heat and New York Knicks—prefer going small but recognize the necessity of matching up with an opponent's size.

We may often complain about the relative dearth of old-school big men who play with their backs to the basket, but it's still the frontcourt members who are helping teams advance.

The guards can gun threes all they want, but it's the teams with size that are moving on in the march toward a championship.

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NBA Playoff Schedule 2013: When and Where to Watch Wednesday's Action

The 2013 NBA playoffs will continue on Wednesday, May 15, as two teams look to close out their respective second-round series. Before the action can resume and the teams can fight for their postseason lives, however, we must ask the most important question of all.

In the first of two games, the Miami Heat will attempt to eliminate the Chicago Bulls from postseason contention. The Heat are currently up 3-1 in the series after taking Game 4 with an 88-65 win over a visibly exhausted Bulls team.

As for the other game, the defending Western Conference champion Oklahoma City Thunder will attempt to begin their comeback from a 3-1 series deficit against the Memphis Grizzlies. The game will take place in OKC, but the short-handed Thunder can't help but be concerned.

The Chicago Bulls enter this game as an emotionally charged yet physically drained team. They upset the Brooklyn Nets without Derrick Rose, Luol Deng or Kirk Hinrich and proceeded to beat the Miami Heat on the road in that same manner.

In Game 5, it'll be a matter of the banged-up Bulls seeing if they have one more miracle left in them. With Dwyane Wade nursing a knee injury, the door has certainly been opened for someone to step up and seize the moment.

This series may be competitive, but the Memphis Grizzlies are the team in full control, as they've taken a 3-1 lead. Most recently, Memphis overcame a late Kevin Durant jump shot and defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder in overtime.

For perspective on just how competitive this series has been, every single game has been decided by six points or less.

Entering Game 5, the Thunder will be as desperate as ever, as they trail 3-1 with the opportunity to cut the deficit at home. Fortunately for OKC, Serge Ibaka rediscovered his ability to play basketball, going for 17 points, 14 rebounds and three blocks in Game 4.

Not to be sold short by his high-profile counterparts, Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley went for 24 points, five assists and four steals in Game 4. Paired with 20-plus point performances by Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph, Memphis' offense has finally returned.

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Swansea City Exceed Expectations For Second Season In A Row

Well before Swansea City secured a first major trophy in their 101-year history with a League Cup demolition of Bradford City, probing questions were raised about life after Brendan Rodgers.

Why people chose to fear the worst is curious when you consider the replacement's football philosophy. "Sometimes the easiest thing in football is a simple five or eight yards, it can be the most effective.

But the sentiment is precisely the same passing model Rodgers brought the club success with, and so it has proved under new management also. The club's predecessor could not resist the greater challenges that lie ahead with Liverpool, prompting the Welsh outfit to draft in an esteemed figure of the game.

The former Juventus, Barcelona, Real Madrid and Ajax legend, for some, is the most technically gifted player to have ever graced a football pitch. On the surface it appeared a real coup, only heavy doubts lingered over a poor track record at both Getafe and Spartak Moscow.

One could argue much of the work Rodgers' had done meant the Dane could experience a smooth transition into English football. But any astute football fan would be aware of the second year blues syndrome that has curtailed many teams over time.

The club lost arguably its two most important cogs, Scott Sinclair and Joe Allen in the summer.  Attacking midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson decided he wouldn't extend an impressive loan spell, and the 'transition' for Laudrup became an increasingly fraught one.

For those who feared a struggle would incur, they need not worry, as the travelling party at Loftus Road were given a sneak preview into the club's impressive campaign.  A 5-0 drubbing of Queens Park Rangers in front of a parochial support on the first day of the campaign is no mean feat, and much of the damaged stemmed from a tall Spaniard.

The Swans paid £2 million for Miguel Perez Cuesta – nicknamed Michu – from Rayo Vallecano and there was little fanfare, rather he was labelled a relative unknown. Even 15 goals in 37 appearances in the La Liga – making him the most prolific midfielder – failed to stir the English media. Two goals on his debut set the tone for an emphatic first-year in the division.

Power, technique an overt passion for the game saw him become an instant hit at the Liberty Stadium. His 21 goals from 40 appearances in all competitions – 17 in the league – have helped guide Swansea to remarkable heights.

Pablo Hernandez was another inspired signing from the new boss, who moved to the club from Valencia for a club record fee of £5.5 million.  The tricky winger started his Swansea career in blistering fashion, playing a significant role in the final third.  A divine assist for the first goal in the League Cup final epitomised the player's ability, and vindicated Laudrup's decision-making.

The final piece of the jigsaw is Jonathon de Guzman, who came on a season-long loan deal from Villarreal. Quick, pacey and strong on the ball, all hallmarks of an effective attacker, and the 25-year-old exemplified this type of play throughout the term.  Two goals in the cup final was just reward for the newly capped Netherlands international, and Swansea will be desperate to retain his services this summer.

Three direct replacements for the outgoing contingent and it's blindingly obvious the new trio have been an upgrade.

Last season's highly credible finish of 11th place will be trumped by a guaranteed finish of ninth, or even eighth — quite simply an amazing achievement.

European football will descend on the Liberty Stadium next season, and in doing so will reaffirm their standing as one of the league's most confident outfits.

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