Monday, April 29, 1996

Robinson anything but "soft" in victory

By KELLEY SHANNON
Associated Press

SAN ANTONIO - So much for softness.

David Robinson, after a week of brushing off questions about whether he's "soft," turned in a hard-edged performance Sunday with 40 points and 21 rebounds as the Spurs beat Phoenix 110-105 to take a 2-0 lead in their first-round playoff series.

Robinson's point and rebound totals were both career playoff-highs.

"I'm not out to prove anything to anyone. The only thing on my mind is winning games," Robinson said. "We Won. That's the only thing you can really say."

Robinson scored 13 of his points in the final quarter, including a turnaround 8-foot jumper over John Williams with 1:34 remaining. He also grabbed a key defensive rebound with 1:18 left after Wesley Person missed a 3-point attempt that would have tied the game.

The Suns remained a threat until the final seconds of the game.

Kevin Johnson's free throws pulled the Suns to 106-105 with 17.3 seconds left. A foul by A.C. Green sent Sean Elliott to the line, and he made both shots to put the Spurs up 108-105 with 12 seconds left.

After a timeout, Green was the only player Phoenix could find open for a 3-point shot. He rushed the attempt and shot an airball with 5.5 seconds left, and Chuck Person then made two free throws to wrap up the victory.

"It was a difficult loss. I felt we could have won," said Suns coach Cotton Fitzsimmons. "What killed us was the free-throw line."

San Antonio was 34-for-41 from the foul line, or 82 percent. Phoenix was 21-for-30, or 70 percent.
Charles Barkley led the Suns with 30 points and 20 rebounds, while Kevin Johnson improved his offensive performance over Game 1 and chipped in 21 points and 16 assists. Johnson had only 14 points in the first game, a 22-point victory for the Spurs.

"We couldn't get over the hump," Barkley said. "It was a very tough game to lose. A great game to be a part of. We played hard and didn't get any breaks. David (Robinson) played terrific."
The Spurs are one of the most cohesive and good-spirited teams in the league, yet sometimes that chemistry is misconstrued as softness. Robinson, the star of the team, has acquired that label - deserved or not.

"I'm still growing and learning," Robinson said, "so if people want to criticize me then let them."

"If that's a soft David Robinson, I'll take him soft every day," Elliott said.
"Really soft, isn't he? It's incredible how soft he is!" coach Bob Hill said sarcastically.
Elliott added 19 points for the Spurs, and Chuck Person scored 16. Avery Johnson handed out 15 assists and scored 12 points.

The series continues Wednesday night at Phoenix.

The Suns are one of only five teams in NBA history to come back from an 0-2 deficit in a best-of-5 series. They bounced back in 1993 to defeat the Los Angeles Lakers 3-2.
San Antonio, leading 85-84 at the start of the fourth, had a 12-4 run in the first 3:40 of the final period. But Phoenix responded with a 7-0 run to trail just 97-95 heading into the final five minutes.
Avery Johnson said there was no debate about who would get the ball in the clutch: Robinson was their man.

"We were smelling a little blood. We had the opportunity to finish them off. And I was saying, 'Big fella, be greedy,' " Johnson smiled.

After tying the score at 59-59 just before halftime on Wayman Tisdale's basket with 5.3 seconds left, the Suns kept the game close the rest of the way. There were seven ties and four lead changes in the third quarter and Barkley scored 10 points in the period.