SAN ANTONIO -- After nearly falling on their face in the opening round of the playoffs, the San Antonio Spurs found their footin

SAN ANTONIO -- After nearly falling on their face in the opening round of the playoffs, the San Antonio Spurs found their footing Tuesday night and ran the Portland Trail Blazers off the court. Clearance Nike Shoes . Tony Parker had 33 points and nine assists and San Antonio never trailed in a resounding 116-92 victory over Portland, bullying the younger Trail Blazers in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals. "Hes been doing that for a lot of years," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "Its nothing different. Hes the guy thats our attack guy. (He) creates for everybody and starts the offence. Hes also played very good defence this year and most people dont really see that." Parker, who had 32 points in Game 7 against Dallas, scored 13 points in the first quarter on a series of drives and capped it with a corner 3 as San Antonio built a 10-point lead 8 minutes into the game. The Spurs never led by less than 20 in the second half. "They did what championship teams do," Portland forward LaMarcus Aldridge said. "They came out and set the tone early. Most of the guys on (Portlands) team havent even been in the second round and theyve won championships. Theyve been here. I think they definitely came out and they let us know how its going to be." Kawhi Leonard had 16 points and Tim Duncan added 12 points and 11 rebounds for San Antonio. More importantly for the Spurs, their bench contributed mightily after being virtually nonexistent in the series against Dallas. Marco Belinelli had 19 points and the Australian connection of Aron Baynes and Patty Mills had 10 points apiece. "We came out swinging, caught them with a few early punches and they were on their back heel at that point," Baynes said. "It was good for us that we came out like that but now we have to maintain it." The Spurs had their most complete game of the post-season, playing with the flair and fluidity that resulted in the leagues best regular-season record. "I think Game 7 (against Dallas) gave us a lot of confidence for our team," Parker said. "I think team wise we played our best game in Game 7. I think tonight was a little bit of the same thing. Defensively, it was one of our best games because Portland has a lot of shooters, a lot of scorers." Portland, meanwhile, didnt come close to resembling the confident and sharp-shooting group that upset Houston in the opening round. Aldridge had 32 points and 14 rebounds and Damian Lillard had 17 points for Portland, but the All-Star duo combined for just 17 points in the first half as San Antonio built a 26-point lead. "They knew where we were going to do (plays)," Aldridge said. "They tried to deny guys on certain sets. They tried to force guys to their weak hand. They did what good teams do. I think guys are going to learn from it." Lillard was pushed out of the paint by 6-foot-7 Leonard early in the game and was nearly knocked off his feet defensively by a series of blistering picks. It wasnt any easier physically for Aldridge, who opened the game shooting 1 for 5 against Tiago Splitter and Baynes. "The first half was not what we were looking for," Portland coach Terry Stotts said. "San Antonio really came out with a lot of energy and aggressiveness. They were the more aggressive team at both ends of the floor for the whole half." Splitter had an early steal on a pass to Aldridge and nearly had a second when he poked a dribble away as the 6-11 forward attempted to push his way into the block. Splitter hit the court in a failed attempt to keep the ball from going out of bounds, but it mattered little as the tone had been set for a long night for Aldridge and the Trail Blazers. Duncan left the game with 4 minutes remaining in the first quarter after picking up two quick fouls, but the Spurs increased their lead in his absence thanks to big contributions from reserves. Baynes had an immediate impact after playing only the final 6 minutes of San Antonios Game 7 victory over Dallas. He scored four points quickly and continued the physical defence against Aldridge that Splitter established. "He was awesome," Duncan said. "He gave us some great minutes. He came in there with his big body, made some plays for us, made some shots, cleaned up the glass. He did everything he was asked to do. It was great." Belinelli finished 3 for 5 from 3-point range, leading the Spurs bench to leap to their feet in loud celebration after the Italian guards struggles in the opening series. After going just 4 for 7 on 3-pointers against Dallas, Belinelli opened the game by hitting his first three attempts from long range. "Ball movement was good," Parker said. "Dallas made a conscious effort to stay on our shooters. Tonight was different. I made a conscious effort to find Marco. I talked to Pop. We wanted Marco to be back in the series, be back in the playoffs. I was trying to call his number and look for him a lot. Tonight I think half my assists were to Marco." The Spurs scored the opening eight points from close range as Portland missed its first six attempts from a variety of spots on the court. NOTES: San Antonio and Portland had not met in the playoffs since the Western Conference finals in 1999, when Sean Elliott made a dramatic 3-pointer with 9 seconds remaining to win Game 2 and spark a series victory. Dubbed the "Memorial Day Miracle," Elliott made the game-winning shot after catching a pass, turning with his heels hovering above the out-of-bounds line and firing a high-arcing shot over a hard-charging Rasheed Wallace. The Spurs would go on to win their first NBA title that season. ... Trail Blazers owner Paul Allen was in attendance as was NBA super fan Jimmy Goldstein, who was dressed in his trademark leather outfit and hat. ... Ginobili was issued a technical foul by Tony Brothers after slamming the ball to the court following a travelling violation with 1:23 remaining in the first quarter. ... Entering the series opener, Duncan had played as many post-season games (218) as the entire Portland roster. Wholesale Nike Shoes . -- Coyotes coach Dave Tippett thinks of one thing when he watches Eastern Conference teams struggle against Western opponents before they get to Phoenix: His team must keep pace. Cheap Nike Shoes . Observant Muslims avoid food and liquids from dawn to dusk during Ramadan but can, and often do, skip it if travelling or doing hard physical labour. Some devout Muslim athletes choose to fast during training or competition, but it can create selection difficulties for the coaches in team sports. https://www.fakenikeshoeswholesale.com/ . Yet heading to New York, the Habs remain positive as it all comes down to the one main ingredient that the organization has built its team on - character. DENVER -- Brian Shaw had to sweat out his first win as an NBA coach right to the final horn. When it was finally over, relief trumped joy. Ty Lawson had 23 points, eight assists and seven rebounds and the Denver Nuggets held on to beat the Atlanta Hawks 109-107 on Thursday night for Shaws first victory. "I feel relieved to finally get it," he said. "It wasnt easy." Nate Robinson added 15 points and JaVale McGee had 14 for Denver (1-3), which rallied from eight points down in the fourth quarter before surviving a late Atlanta rally. The win leaves Utah (0-5) as the NBAs only winless team. Paul Millsap scored a season-high 29 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Hawks but missed a short jumper that would have tied the game with 1.9 seconds left. Al Horford, who had 21 points, grabbed the rebound but his shot was off as time expired. When Horfords shot skimmed off the rim, the Nuggets could finally relax. "Nothing is going to be easy with this team, every night its going to be a dog fight," Shaw said. "We almost did everything in our power to not win it." The Nuggets led by as many as nine points in the first half and five in the third quarter but found themselves trailing in the final 7 minutes. The Hawks took the lead early in the fourth quarter when Kyle Korver hit a 3-pointer and Shelvin Macks desperation heave at the shot-clock buzzer made it 93-88. Macks layup and a basket by Jeff Teague extended the lead to 98-90 with 6:52 left. "It was hectic," Horford said. "I felt like when we were up 98-92 it was a good chance for us to put them away and we werent able to. They kept making tough shots." Denver rallied to take the lead on Lawsons jumper with 1:46 left and his 3-pointer made it 107-102 with 59 seconds remaining. "They were making big plays, we were making big plays," Lawson said. "I tried to tell our guys they were going to make another push and the game wasnt over." The Hawks proved him right by mounting a comeback. Teagues basket made it a three-point game and Millsap hit two free throws with 26 seconds left to make it 107-106. Discount Nike Shoes. Robinson and Millsap traded free throws, and Lawson hit 1 of 2 from the line to make it 109-107. Atlanta called time out to set up a play, and the ball went into Millsap. His turnaround jumper over Andre Miller -- giving up 6 inches -- was short, Horford got the rebound but missed a short jumper. "I had a smaller guy on me so I figured I could shoot over the top of him," said Millsap, who missed his final four shots after starting 10 of 11 from the field. "I knew it would be difficult to get to the basket. I settled for my step-back jump shot. I felt like it was a good shot, it didnt go in." The veteran Miller was expecting Millsap to go to the basket. "I didnt think he was going to post me, I thought they were going to go to the pick-and-roll but luckily I got him off the block enough," Miller said. He did enough to help the Nuggets avoid starting 0-4 for the first time since the lockout-shortened 1999 season. "It was weighing on everybody. Coach Shaw, the assistant coaches had speeches for us today," Lawson said. "To get this monkey off our back feels good for everyone." The Nuggets used an 11-2 run at the end of the first quarter to tie the game at 26-all. Evan Fournier hit two 3-pointers to bring Denver close after Atlanta had scored 14 straight to take a 10-point lead. Denver went up 44-35 midway through the second when JaVale McGee slammed a lob from Randy Foye, but the Hawks went on a 13-4 run to tie it at 48. Lawsons driving layup with 3.6 seconds left in the first half gave the Nuggets a 54-51 halftime lead. NOTES: Hawks G Dennis Schroder served his one-game suspension Thursday. Schroder was suspended by the league for striking Sacramentos DeMarcus Cousins in the groin during Atlantas win over the Kings on Tuesday. ... Nuggets F Wilson Chandler (strained left hamstring) has started basketball activities but there is no timetable for his return. ... Korver has made at least one 3-pointer in 78 straight games. Its the longest active streak in the NBA and tied for third-longest in league history. ' ' '