The experienced San Antonio Spurs beat hosts Hornets 91-82 in their deciding Game Seven on Monday to grab the ticket for the Western Conference final against Los Angeles Lakers.
The defending NBA champions will play in-form Lakers in their Game One in Los Angeles on Wednesday.
The Spurs held a commanding 71-56 lead going into the fourth quarter but the Hornets cut that deficit to 83-80 on Jannero Pargo's three-pointer with 90 seconds remaining.
San Antonio pulled away again and held on to clinch the best-of-seven series 4-3, after the previous six games had all gone the way of the home team.
Argentine Manu Ginobili led the way for the Spurs with 26 points, five rebounds and five assists while point guard Tony Parker contributed 17 points and Tim Duncan 16.
"It just happened that I made a lot of shots in the first half," Ginobili said in a courtside television interview.
"In the second, I didn't play as good but we played solid and we kept them to 82 points which is great for us. It was great teamwork."
David West top-scored with 20 points for the Hornets, who posted a franchise-record 56 victories in the regular season.
Play-maker Chris Paul, a first-year All Star, was held to 18 points and eight rebounds.
Source: Xinhua
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