Durant Leads Stealth, Forces Decisive Game SevenGame 6, Western Conference Finals, 2013 NBA playoffs: Seattle Stealth at Sacramento Kings 93-90 (Series tied 3-3)Preview |
Boxscore |
Recap |
HighlightsMAY 26, SACRAMENTO (AP) – After a defeat in Game 5, Seattle Stealth youngsters Jao Wu and Aaron Karl called a players-only meeting. In it, they expressed to the older players how much they wanted everyone to come together to stay alive in the Western Conference Finals. They said that no matter what each individual wanted to achieve, they had to share one common goal: win a championship for Jason Kidd.
“Jason has gotten us this far,” Karl stated, “I would think that it would be tough for him to watch us fall like we have. J (Jao) and I thought enough was enough and it was time to get everyone on the same page. We know that Coach (Sit) has tried his heart out to get through to everyone but it wasn’t working. It was time that one of us said something.” Wu admitted, “I’m only a rookie and Aaron is nearly as young as me. We thought it was a long shot. But for Jason, we had to try something.”
The miracle they were hoping for eventuated and the Stealth’s players regrouped overnight. Kevin Durant led the charge with 34 points as Seattle played on a united front. Durant and Reshawn Tyson set aside their differences to power the Stealth to a win with their backs against the walls. Tyson ended with 17 points and Andrew Bogut added 22.
Durant and Tyson both declined to comment after the game and the team sent Australian All-Star Centre Bogut to conduct the podium interview. Bogut spoke of his two team mates, “They’re playing together again out of respect for Jason.” Bogut also noted that it was great to see Durant play good again and defended his captain for the recent criticism he has received in the media, “Kevin was having a few off-nights. He is an awesome player so don’t try and say that he quit on the team just because he didn’t deliver on one night.”
Moses Chara led the Kings with 29 points and Russell Westbrook had another double double of 21 points, 11 assists. Michael Redd and Al Jefferson added 14 apiece.
The focus was on Durant and Chara all night as the two stars did battle, which seemed to have been won by Durant. Although Chara had 19 points in the first half in comparison to Durant’s 16 and the Kings did hold a lead at halftime (47-42); Durant ended the third quarter with a three point play, drawing a foul off of Chara. That would extend Seattle’s lead to a game-high 9 points at 69-60. Another highlight from Durant was in the final quarter where he soared over Chara to grab a rebound and went coast to coast for the dunk.
Chara was left red-faced after badly missing a three pointer late in the game that could have cut his team’s deficit to one point. On the next possession down the court, Durant would hit a triple in his face to extend Seattle’s advantage to 6 points. Even though Chara would later hit a long range shot with 11 seconds left to cut the Stealth lead to 3, it was too late for any comeback. Chara made note of the pivotal exchange between him and Durant, “I had a chance to help us gain a lot of ground. Things didn’t go my way. Time to move on and think about winning Game 7.”
Chara also refused to acknowledge the fight shown by the Stealth and instead blamed his teammates for giving Seattle a shot at taking the series at home, “Everyone played bad on my team. I’m carrying them and they’re just not performing.”
Head Coach Will Sit praised his young players for their initiative and maturity, “I’m happy that my guys pulled for me at the last minute. Now it’s time for us to go home and defend our home court.” Sit also took a swipe at Chara as well as possibly playing the ‘mind trick’ card with his teammates, “Moses Chara might be the League MVP but he sure isn’t the League’s best team player. What kind of leader would openly criticise his teammates like he does. If I was a player, I would hate to be his teammate. Why don’t any of the Kings stand up to him?”
Notes: Jason Kidd was on the Stealth bench helping the coaching staff again. His right arm is still in a sling… Allen Iverson started at point guard again and was solid with 7 points and 11 assists… Karl and Wu didn’t manage to get off the bench but were the most popular players in the locker room after the game for questions from the media… Seattle won the game thanks to a 27-13 third quarter…
Box Score wrote:Sacramento Kings
SF Moses Chara: 29 points, 4 assists, 2 steals, 11-22 FG, 3-9 3PT, 4-5 FT
PG Russell Westbrook: 21 points, 11 assists
SG Michael Redd: 14 points, 5 assists
PF Al Jefferson: 14 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks, 7-9 FG
Seattle Stealth
SF Kevin Durant: 34 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 12-15 FG, 1-2 3PT, 9-9 FT
C Andrew Bogut: 22 points, 5 rebounds, 11-14 FG
SG Reshawn Tyson: 17 points
PF David Lee: 8 points
SG Allen Iverson: 7 points, 11 assists
NBA.com wrote:Around-The-League Wrap-Up: Game 6
Cavs 100 (James 20 pts, 9 reb, 6 ast, Noah 13 pts, 12 reb, Gay 19 pts, 8 reb)
@
Bucks 95 (Gray 21 pts, 18 reb, 9 ast, 3 blk, 2 stl, Washburn 17 pts, 10 reb, Conley 15 pts)
[Cavs win series 4-2]