The Oklahoma City Thunder got an epic performance from Russell Westbrook. They ran out to a huge early lead. They watched LeBron James get carried off the court in the fourth quarter, and took the lead shortly after he departed.
Somehow, it still was not enough as they lost Game 4 of the NBA finals to the Miami Heat on Tuesday, slipping to a 3-1 series deficit and needing to win the next three in a row to take the title.
Even after getting 43 points from Westbrook, 28 more from Kevin Durant and staking themselves to a 17-point lead by the time the first quarter was over, Oklahoma City lost 104-98 and are now officially on the brink.
Photo: AFP
“I can guarantee this,” Thunder coach Scott Brooks said. “We have fight in us.”
Game 5 is in Miami today, where the Heat can capture the NBA title that they were assembled to get two years ago.
History says the Thunder are now in deep, deep trouble. No team in NBA history has rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the finals. No team has even forced a Game 7 when faced with that scenario.
Westbrook took 32 shots, as many as James and Chris Bosh tried combined. He made 20 — half of Oklahoma City’s field goals on the night — and finished with seven rebounds and five assists as well. For a guard who struggled so much so many times against Miami, it was a breakout night that the Thunder desperately needed.
“Russell was terrific tonight,” Brooks said. “The guy played relentless. He was aggressive. He kept us in this game and he gave us a chance to win.”
“He was tremendous tonight,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.
What they also needed was to take advantage of that tremendous night — and that did not happen, largely because Miami made sure Oklahoma City only had two options by night’s end.
“It’s not me against the world, it’s not the world against me,” Westbrook said, when asked if his night silenced critics. “It’s me and my teammates trying to win.”
There was one huge blip in Westbrook’s night, and it was a play that helped the Heat seal the outcome. After a jump ball with 17.3 seconds remaining and five seconds left on the shot clock, Westbrook fouled Chalmers as the shot clock was dwindling down. Chalmers made both free throws, the lead was five, and 20,003 Heat fans in the building knew their team was moments from a 3-1 series lead.
“Just a miscommunication on my part,” Westbrook said. “Nothing I can do about it now.”
Durant’s mother grabbed him by both arms as he walked off the floor, hugging him and then using her right hand to turn his face back toward her, trying her best to console the scoring champion. The Thunder were up 33-16, Durant and Westbrook were scoring at will and Durant threw the Heat an early curve ball by opening the game guarding Chalmers, the Heat point guard.
Perhaps he should have stayed on Chalmers, given how good he was in the second half.
For the final 16-plus minutes, the Thunder were reduced to playing 2-on-5 basketball. Serge Ibaka made a jumper with 4 minutes 46 seconds left in the third quarter, cutting Miami’s lead to 68-66.
After that, it was either all Westbrook or all Durant, all the time.
“We just have to stay together,” center Kendrick Perkins said. “It’s not over.”
The stars were superb, again, just not superb enough to take down Miami. After that Ibaka jumper, no other Thunder player besides the team’s two superstars scored a point.
“It’s not disappointing. It happens that way,” Brooks said. “Russell had a great game. We were going. We were going with him. He was making terrific plays at the basket. He was attacking, he was getting into the teeth of their defense and made basketball plays.”
James Harden struggled yet again, shooting 2 for 10 for the second straight game, though he did finish with 10 rebounds. Nick Collison scored six points, but the other three Oklahoma City starters — Ibaka, Perkins and Thabo Sefolosha — combined for a mere 13 on 6-for-16 shooting.
“We’re going to keep fighting,” Durant said. “[It is] frustrating to lose like that, but we’re going to keep fighting, man. That’s how we’ve been since I got here.”
Defending champions Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka on Wednesday led the way into the Cincinnati Open quarter-finals, with Carlos Alcaraz hot on their heels after a straight-sets victory of his own. Sinner shrugged off a mid-match weather delay lasting nearly three hours as he advanced 6-4, 7-6 (7/4) over Adrian Mannarino. Alcaraz, the second seed who has reached the final in his past six tournaments, hammered Italian lucky loser Luca Nardi 6-1, 6-4. After sweeping the opening set in 28 minutes, Alcaraz hit a speed bump, dropping his serve to trail 2-4. He promptly regained the break, then fought through a marathon ninth game
Taiwan’s men’s basketball team on Monday clinched a spot in the FIBA Asia Cup quarter-finals with a 78-64 win over Jordan in Saudi Arabia, securing their best finish in the tournament since placing fourth in 2013. The win was sweet revenge for Taiwan, who were denied a quarter-final spot by Jordan at the same stage of the previous Asia Cup in 2022 after blowing a nine-point lead in the final minute and losing 97-96 on a half-court buzzer-beater. “History is part of the journey,” Taiwan head coach Gianluca Tucci said when asked about the 2022 collapse of the team, who he did
Taiwan’s national basketball team on Wednesday suffered a heartbreaking loss, ending their FIBA Asia Cup run after Iran staged a dramatic comeback to secure a 78-75 victory in the quarter-finals at King Abdullah Sports City in Saudi Arabia. Taiwan were in front for 38 minutes, 30 seconds of the 40-minute game. Iran only took the lead in the final minute, but it was enough to knock Taiwan out of the tournament. With the win, Iran advanced to tomorrow’s semi-finals, when they face Australia. The loss ended a promising campaign for Taiwan, who had been aiming for their first semi-final appearance since the 2013 FIBA
STUMBLE: World No. 2 Coco Gauff confidently won her first set against seventh-seed Italian Jasmine Paolini before being overcome in the second and third sets World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and second-ranked Coco Gauff were sent crashing out of the ATP-WTA Cincinnati Open on Friday, while Carlos Alcaraz fought off a fierce challenge from Andrey Rublev to reach the semi-finals. Top seed and defending champion Sabalenka had no answer for Elena Rybakina, falling to the 2022 Wimbledon champion 6-1, 6-4. Reigning French Open champion Gauff had 16 double faults in a 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 exit at the hands of seventh-seeded Italian Jasmine Paolini. Spain’s second-ranked Alcaraz had his difficulties, but he broke Rublev in the final game of a tense duel to emerge a 6-3, 4-6, 7-5 winner
RSS