The Thunder evened the NBA Finals at 2-2 with a win over the Pacers Friday.
Oklahoma City was at risk of heading home with a 3-1 deficit, just one loss away from elimination, but they dug deep to pull out a difficult road win. Gilgeous-Alexander had 35 points on the night and hit all 10 of his free-throw attempts.
As a unit, the Thunder shot just 3-for-17 on three-pointers in Game 4, but having their backs against the wall heading into the game and for most of the night helped in the end. "We played with desperation to end the game and that's why we won," Gilgeous-Alexander said in his postgame interview on the national broadcast Friday. "We got to try to maintain the same desperation going into Game 5, Game 6 and whatever it may be." “3-1 is a lot different than 2-2 going back home. We played with desperation to end the game and that’s why we won.”He explained the Thunder knew the stakes at hand. I mean, how couldn't they? A hostile environment, trailing in the series and momentum on the other side. When asked if Game 4 could be considered as a must win, he said the Thunder knew it when they woke up in the morning, because a 3-1 series deficit is a lot different than 2-2. Now, the Thunder reclaim home court and head back to home for a chance to take a series lead of their own. Game 5 tips off Monday at 8:30 p.m. ET in Oklahoma City.Blake Silverman is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, he covered the WNBA, NBA, G League and college basketball for numerous sites, including Winsidr, SB Nation's Detroit Bad Boys and A10Talk. He graduated from Michigan State University before receiving a master's in sports journalism from St. Bonaventure University. Outside of work, he's probably binging the latest Netflix documentary, at a yoga studio or enjoying everything Detroit sports. A lifelong Michigander, he lives in suburban Detroit with his wife, young son and their personal petting zoo of two cats and a dog.
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