SAN ANTONIO VS. LOS ANGELES PHILADELPHIA VS. MILWAUKEE

Wednesday, May 30 Spurs blaming themselves for defeat Associated Press SAN ANTONIO -- The San Antonio Spurs missed injured guard Derek Anderson -- and too many shots. Shaquille O'Neal and Tim Duncan battled like Goliath and Goliath, but L.A. swarmed the Spurs in Game 1. Kobe Bryant, normally Anderson's defensive assignment, scored 45 points and the Spurs went 5-of-15 from 3-point range in a 104-90 loss to the Lakers in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals. "We had open looks at the basket," said David Robinson, who had 14 points and 11 rebounds. "We were missing shots that we normally make. We were turning the ball over. You turn the ball right to the other guy, what are you doing? That's not the way we play basketball." It was the first home playoff loss of the year for San Antonio, which had the best record in the NBA to earn homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs. The Spurs had 15 turnovers -- 10 in the first half -- that Los Angeles turned into 18 points. "We didn't take care of the ball," said Tim Duncan, who led San Antonio with 28 points and 14 rebounds. "I missed a whole bunch of easy looks. Things just didn't go down for me." With Duncan double-teamed, the Spurs turned to their usual strategy of perimeter shooting. But sharpshooters Antonio Daniels and Terry Porter, who contributed to the Spurs' 42-percent shooting from 3-point range through the first two rounds of the playoffs, each hit 1-of-5. "We gave up a lot of easy buckets," said Daniels, who had 20 points. He also had to contend with Bryant with Anderson out. Anderson, the Spurs' second-leading scorer, separated his shoulder in Game 1 of the semifinals against Dallas and is expected to be out at least another week. "He's a great player and he's going to make plays," Daniels said of Bryant, who went 19-of-35 from the field. "That's going to be expected." Sean Elliott, who at 6-foot-8 has an inch on Bryant, didn't have much better luck than the 6-4 Daniels. "You can stay in front of the guy, you can shake and bake in front of him, and he can still elevate," Daniels said. The Spurs couldn't contain Shaquille O'Neal, either. He had 28 points, while Derek Fisher added 13. The Spurs had won all five of their home playoff games this year, four by at least 14 points. During the regular season, the Spurs had an NBA-best 33-8 home record, which they shared with Sacramento. The loss -- the Spurs' first at home since a 107-105 overtime setback against Sacramento on April 12 -- broke the Spurs' 21-game home-playoff streak of holding opponents under 90 points, an NBA record. The last time a team scored more than 90 points in the Alamodome during the playoffs was in Game 1 of the 1996 Western Conference semifinals, when Utah won 95-75. During its first nine playoff playoff games, San Antonio limited opponents to 86.8 points and 38.5 percent shooting. The Lakers shot 47 percent from the field. The Spurs are 0-3 in the playoffs when shooting less than 40 percent from 3-point range. "I thought we were sloppy," San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said, "more than I've seen us in three months. You have to give the Lakers credit for their aggressiveness. Be that as it may, I was really disappointed in our mental errors, some we haven't made in a very, very long time." Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories

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