<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Manu Ginobili darted across the court, timed his leap and flung his body into the air one more time. Rasheed Wallace's pass never had a chance. Ginobili reached the height of his jump, thrust his left arm skyward and spiked the ball into the lap of a courtside fan. Detroit coach Larry Brown, having seen all he needed to see, waved his starters off the floor. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich responded by doing the same. As Ginobili walked toward the bench Sunday night, his 27-point, seven-assist performance complete, the Spurs' 97-76 victory all but finished, the sellout crowd packing the SBC Center rose to its feet. M-V-P! M-V-P! M-V-P! "It was beautiful," Ginobili said of the recognition. "But it's something none of us are thinking. It's something that can take you out of your main goal: making your teammates better and playing well." Ginobili has done a lot of both lately, which explains why the Spurs will leave for Detroit this afternoon only two victories away from their third championship. Only two teams have squandered a 2-0 advantage in the NBA Finals, and neither had a left-handed Argentine leading them. After taking over the final quarter of Game 1, Ginobili spent much of Sunday serving as the Spurs' primary playmaker. When the Pistons backed off, he buried four of the team's franchise playoff record 11 3-pointers. When they tried to cut him off, he found his teammates. Ginobili's 27 points came on just eight shots. From the start of Thursday's second half to the end of Sunday's third quarter, he made 15 of his 16 attempts. The lone miss came when he back-rimmed a 40-footer at the third-quarter buzzer in Game 1. "I don't know what to say about Manu," Nazr Mohammed said. "He's making all the plays right now." Ginobili wasn't the only one. Tim Duncan provided 18 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks. Bruce Bowen, in addition to frustrating Richard Hamilton into missing 10 more shots, made four 3-pointers. Tony Parker, despite being in foul trouble much of the second half, pressured Chauncey Billups. The Spurs also beat Brown with his own play-the-right-way values: selflessness and solid defense. In addition to holding Detroit to 40.2 percent shooting, the Spurs, who shot 58.8 percent in the first half, assisted on 23 of their 29 baskets. "When we're playing on that level and hitting shots like that," Duncan said, "we're tough to beat." </div> Source
