In the immediate aftermath, David Robinson and Duncan fumbled an inbound pass, leading to a steal by Horry. Horry immediately passed the ball to Heximon, who executed a drive-by crossover, evading Johnson's lunge, and accelerated into the Spurs' paint. Before several of the Spurs' big men could recover, he drove to the basket and scored with a layup!
Heximon, scoring 8 points single-handedly, not only bewildered the Spurs but also helped the Lakers solidify their double-digit lead, effectively laying the foundation for their victory in this game.
At halftime, the Lakers led the Spurs by 14 points.
During the halftime break, Coach Harris praised the Lakers' performance in the first half. He particularly highlighted Heximon's exceptional stability from beyond the three-point line, which powerfully countered the Spurs' interior offense. This ensured that despite not having a size advantage, the Lakers withstood the "Three Towers" assault from the Spurs, creating conditions and setting the stage for the explosive performances of O'Neal and Kobe during their respective rotations.
Conversely, the Spurs were in a frantic post-game huddle, with Popovich urgently re-evaluating the reliability of the "Three Towers" lineup with his coaching staff. However, opinions among his assistants were divided, leaving Popovich undecided. He resolved to stick with the new lineup for the second half without making any changes. Nevertheless, in terms of defensive strategy, Popovich instructed his players to extend their defense beyond the three-point line, minimizing any open three-point looks for the Lakers' backcourt, led by Heximon!
This adjustment by the Spurs had both advantages and disadvantages.
On the beneficial side, it did indeed reduce the Lakers' three-point shooting accuracy. However, the drawback was that as the defensive line expanded, the Spurs' interior defense weakened. Duncan was often pulled to the high post near the free-throw line, leaving the interior effectively a matchup of Perdue + David Robinson against the Lakers' O'Neal + Campbell or Horry!
When Horry played power forward, he would occasionally draw David Robinson further out, striving to create one-on-one opportunities for O'Neal against Perdue in the post.
Perdue, in a one-on-one situation, was no match for O'Neal, especially in his near-peak form.
In other words, once the Spurs' defense extended, the potency of the "Three Towers" lineup naturally diminished, and their effectiveness in containing O'Neal's scoring also decreased.
Ultimately, the Spurs' comeback attempt failed. They lost the first game of the semifinals 99-108.
Heximon played 40 minutes, shooting 8 of 13 from the field, 6 of 9 from three-point range, and 1 of 2 from the free-throw line, scoring 23 points, along with 10 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block, and 2 turnovers, and 3 fouls.
In terms of scoring, Heximon was second only to O'Neal's 24 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks. He also outscored Eddie Jones' 18 points and Kobe's 16 points!
For the Spurs, Duncan led all scorers with 33 points and 10 rebounds, 3 assists. Operating both inside and outside, he certainly had plenty of shooting opportunities, some created by David Robinson and some he found himself...
Besides Duncan, David Robinson contributed 21 points and 14 rebounds, while Johnson added 14 points and 8 assists.
The Spurs' core remained these three. Perdue, the third tower, went 1 of 1 from the field but scored 6 points from free throws, finishing with 8 points and 8 rebounds!
O'Neal, who had initially underestimated Perdue due to their significant difference in skill level, showed a noticeable increase in "respect" for him after seeing Perdue make all 6 of his free throws...
At the post-game press conference, Harris lavished praise on the Spurs' rookie, Duncan, calling him "unstoppable, a prodigy..."
Popovich, in turn, lauded the Lakers' twin stars as "the future rulers of the league..."
Both head coaches, coincidentally, engaged in a bit of "poisoned milk" diplomacy, aiming to make the opposing team complacent through praise, potentially leading to internal friction... In any case, neither of them were saints...
The second game of the semifinals continued to be played at the Lakers' home court.
The Lakers maintained the same starting lineup as in Game 1, while the Spurs made a minor adjustment to their starting five.
Popovich continued to utilize the "Three Towers" lineup, but he moved Del Negro, who played on the perimeter, to the bench, and brought Jaren Jackson from the bench into the starting lineup.
Compared to Del Negro, Jaren Jackson might not be as accurate from three-point range, but his individual defense was stronger, and he possessed better physical conditioning!
Popovich's adjustment had a clear objective: to directly target the Lakers' backcourt duo of Eddie Jones and Heximon!
In the previous game, the Spurs' backcourt pairing of Johnson and Del Negro had not exerted enough defensive pressure on the Lakers, allowing the Lakers' perimeter game to open up quickly, rendering the efforts of the Spurs' interior "Three Towers" futile.
In this game, Popovich attempted to attack from both the inside and outside simultaneously, hoping to contain the Lakers' perimeter while also using the "Three Towers" to overcome the Lakers' interior players led by O'Neal.
This adjustment by the Spurs actually yielded results!
Since entering the league in 1989, Jaren Jackson had played for 8 teams in 8 seasons. Before joining the Spurs, he had only started one game, a perennial bench player who found respect and hope with the Spurs!
Now, called upon in a crucial playoff moment by Popovich to start, Jaren Jackson felt a profound sense of loyalty, as if he would "die for a patron who understood him."
Consequently, in this game, Jaren Jackson played with what could be described as a defense for his life. He disregarded any potential injuries and showed no concern for appearances. As long as he could prevent Eddie Jones from scoring, Jaren Jackson was willing to do anything...
Under Jaren Jackson's desperate defense, Eddie Jones' outside shooting touch faltered, and Heximon's shooting touch was also affected.
With the Lakers' perimeter game shut down, their offense became bogged down in a struggle with the Spurs. The Lakers, lacking significant offensive production, involuntarily entered their strongest defensive state as well. The result was a brutal defensive battle between the two teams!
When their shots weren't falling, they were forced to drive to the basket for the closest scoring opportunities... Even Heximon, who usually prioritized efficiency, had to resort to aggressive drives into the Spurs' paint to threaten his opponents... This illustrates the intensity of the game...
With one minute left in the game, the score was tied at 79-79.
The Lakers had possession. Heximon made a brilliant pass to a cutting Kobe, who received the ball and drove into the Spurs' paint, attempting a powerful dunk!
Duncan flew in from the flank and grazed the ball, causing Kobe's dunk attempt to miss. Two potential points slipped away...