After three straight blowouts, NBA fans finally got their first barn-burner of the Finals in Game 4 on Friday night in a contest that featured 18 lead changes and 14 ties. But as close as it was from tip-off until late in the fourth quarter, the Warriors would eventually escape Cleveland with a 108-97 win to take an all-but-insurmountable 3-1 series lead. No team in NBA history has ever come back from a 3-1 deficit to win the Finals.
It also doubled as a showdown between two of the NBA’s most exciting point guards, with Kyrie Irving building on his stellar play in Game 3 to score 34 points, while Steph Curry finally put in the MVP-worthy performance the world’s been waiting for as he went off for a game-high 38 points on 7-of-13 shooting from behind the arc.
All the hysteria going into Game 4 about Kevin Love and whether he’d be cleared to play, and if so, would he start or come off the bench or just be benched entirely and/or traded or exiled to Siberia were finally answered. Love didn’t start but played a little over 25 minutes and was mostly a non-factor, finishing with 11 points and five rebounds on 50 percent shooting.
Despite the loss, the Cavs had five players in double figures, led by Irving, with LeBron James nearly logging a triple-double as he put up 25 points, 13 rebounds, and nine assists. Tristan Thompson and J.R. Smith added 10 points apiece. Thompson continued his rebounding dominance early on as he pulled down five offensive boards in the first quarter alone, while doing a tremendous job of switching onto Curry on the pick-n-roll and preventing him from getting clean looks at the basket.
But that would prove to be short-lived. The Splash Brothers were in full-effect in this game as Klay Thompson finally got his first first-quarter points of the series en route to 25 points on 50 percent shooting from the floor, including 4-of-9 from distance.
Most of Game 4 was a war of attrition, particularly the third quarter, when the Warriors fought their way back to take a narrow 79-77 lead into the final period. They would then use a 12-1 run midway through the fourth to take a nine-point lead; meanwhile, the Cavs went frigid, going more than six minutes without a field goal and missing seven consecutive shots.
Things got chippy late in the game between LeBron and Draymond Green as they got tangled up on one particular play and did some jawing and shoving back-and-forth. It was a potentially dicey scenario for Green, who can’t afford to pick up any more technicals or flagrant fouls at the risk a suspension. He would, however, wisely back off and diffuse the situation. Soon after, LeBron’s mounting frustration led to another heated exchange with Curry following a particularly physical sequence between the two.
The Warriors now head back to Golden State for a chance to cap off their historic season and bring home the title with a win on their home floor. Game 5 tips off on Monday at 9 p.m. ET on ABC.
