 |
| (Photo: newsday.com) |
Even though, the Heat won 104-98 over the Thunder last night and taking a 3-1 series lead, there were reasons why the won and there were reasons why the Thunder loss. Let’s take a look inside the numbers for Game 4. I am first going to take a look at the Thunder and the numbers from their side that stood out to me.
OKC Thunder: First let’s take a look at Kevin Durant. Durant had 28 points which was good but only had two rebounds the entire game. Both these rebounds came in the fourth quarter but as a Thunder fan you need to see Durant crash the boards more and get at least six to seven more rebounds.
Next, point guard Russell Westbrook had a fabulous game and kept the Thunder in the game especially in the fourth quarter, where he scored 13 straight points. Westbrook played 45 minutes and scored the most points he ever has so far in the finals with 43 points. Many people might criticize his turnovers late in the game when the Thunder could not afford it but you cannot because he single handily kept them in the game.
The next player I am going to look at on the Thunder is James Harden who had a game to forget. Harden had many wide open shots and hesitated to take them. That is one thing you should not do, when you have the wide open shot take it, do not hesitate because that messes up the rhythm of the shot. In 37 minutes of game action, Harden scored eight points on 2 of 10 shooting and had 10 rebounds. For Harden, to have eight points is not good because throughout the playoffs this season he has averaged 16.2 points per game. Finally, the Thunder did not shoot well from three point range as they were 3 for 16 from the three point line, which is 18.8 percent. Now I am going to take a look at the Heat and the numbers from their side that stood out to me and why they won Game 4.
Miami Heat: The Heat won Game 4 in my opinion due to these two players and this one stat. First, LeBron James had another great game in the finals as he exercising his NBA Finals demons. James had 26 points, 9 rebounds, and 12 assists. James was one rebound away from a triple-double but could not get it as he was injured in the last couple of minutes in the game. This leads me to another player that the Heat leaned on in the final moments of the game while LeBron was on the bench.
Mario Chalmers probably had one of his best games in his career and especially in the finals. In 34 minutes of game action, Chalmers had 25 points and had nine of those 25 points from the three point line. When Chalmers was wide open, he was automatic and did not hesitate to take the shot. He is one of the main reasons why the Heat won. Finally, the Heat shot better than the Thunder from the three point line and it was a big reason that momentum went towards the Heat’s way. The Heat was 10 of 26 from three point range, which is 38.5 percent.
The Heat are one win away from winning the NBA Finals. Can the Thunder stave off elimination and take Game 5 and steal momentum for a possible Game 6? We will see, Thursday at 9:00 pm on ABC.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
