Spurs of the Moment: San Antonio Will Bounce Back in Game Two

Losing the first game of a seven-game series is never a good sign. It is even worse when you lose that game at home. With their backs against the wall, expect the Spurs to come out firing in Game 2 on Wednesday night.

Losing to an eighth seed isn't common in the NBA. It has only happened three times since 1994—the latest being in 2007 when Golden State upset Dallas.

The Spurs are not the Mavericks, and they won't lose this series.

The Grizzlies caught the Spurs off guard in Game 1. They didn't have an answer for Marc Gasol and Zach Randolph. They combined to score 49 points in the game—Randolph getting 25 and Gasol getting 24. 

Gregg Popovich won't let that happen again, especially at home. He has been through the trials and tribulations, and has became one of the best coaches in the past 15 years. Expect him to have his defense show up on Wednesday night.

I believe that they will allow Randolph to get his, but the focus will be on the other guys. Randolph has had solid games against San Antonio all season, but the Spurs have been successful. If they contest all of his shots, box-out and rebound, I think they should be fine-moving forward.

As for the series, going to Memphis will not be an easy task. They will desperately need to get Manu Ginobili back into action as soon as possible. If and when he returns, the Spurs will win this series in six games.

They have allowed teams to shoot 45.6 percent (19th in NBA) from the floor on the season, which isn't the Spurs defense we are accustomed to. They allowed Memphis to shoot 55 percent from the floor in Game 1.

The Spurs have to play better basketball on Wednesday night, and it starts on defense.