Game Preview: Spurs v Rockets

The San Antonio Spurs play host to the Houston Rockets in Game 1 of the Western
Conference semifinals, at AT&T Center on Monday evening. The Spurs finished the
regular season with the two seed, and defeated the Grizzlies in six games in the
first round, while the Rockets finished third in the regular season and defeated
the Thunder in five games, in order to take part in the conference semifinals.
The Rockets won the first meeting of the season but the Spurs won twice on the
road and once at home to win the season series against Houston, 3-1. James
Harden averaged 29.8 points, 11.0 assists and 9.0 rebounds per game against the
Spurs during the regular season, while Kawhi Leonard put up 28.5 points, 5.0
rebounds, 2.8 steals, 2.5 assists and 1.0 block per game against the Rockets.
Considering the fact that the Rockets scored an average of 115.3 points per game
during the regular season, it is notable that the Spurs held them an average of
12.3 points below that over their four meetings during the regular season. The
Spurs were the second-best defense during the season, holding opponents to an
average of 98.1 points per game, and certainly showed they can slow down the
high-speed Rockets. This series is the battle of an immovable object versus an
unstoppable force. Although an exaggeration, it is certainly a matchup of two
extremes, meaning that something has got to give. The Spurs are the more
seasoned team, while the Rockets are not short of experience either, and have
many weapons.