San Antonio Spurs shooting guard Manu Ginobili (20), of Argentina, shoots between Oklahoma City Thunder guard James Harden, left, and Thabo Sefolosha, right, of Switzerland, during the second half of Game 1 in their NBA basketball Western Conference finals playoff series, Sunday, May 27, 2012, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)
SAN ANTONIO, Texas – Manu Ginobili scored 26 points and the San Antonio Spurs turned it on in the fourth quarter to beat Oklahoma City 101-98 Sunday in the first game of the NBA Western Conference Finals.
The Spurs stretched their winning streak to 19 games and moved one game closer to booking their berth in the NBA Finals.
The winner of this best-of-seven series will face either the Miami Heat or Boston Celtics for the NBA title. San Antonio host game two on Tuesday.
The Spurs, who trailed by nine points late in the third, turned the tables in the fourth, when they out-scored Oklahoma City 39-27.
The Spurs also had just three turn-overs in the second half, compared to their 13 in the first half.
Kevin Durant led Oklahoma City with 27 points and Russell Westbrook added 17, but they couldn’t stop the Spurs in the final period.
Point guard Tony Parker scored 18 points with six assists for San Antonio, while Tim Duncan scored 16 and grabbed 11 rebounds.
With Argentinian Ginobili leading the way, the Spurs bench contributed 52 points.