Thunder 2-2 Pacers! Who can win the battle of Tianwang Mountain?

NBA Finals continued, with the Thunder defeating the Pacers 111-104. The game was ups and downs, with the Thunder falling only 1 point behind in the first quarter, and the gap between the two sides still not widened in the second quarter. In the third quarter, the Pacers put pressure on the Thunder, but in the last quarter, the Pacers' shooting rate dropped sharply, and Alexander frequently made fouls at critical moments, the Thunder won 14 points in this quarter and finally achieved a reversal victory. In terms of data, Alexander contributed 35 points, 3 rebounds and 3 steals, Jaylen Williams scored 27 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists, Homgren had 14 points and 15 rebounds, Caruso contributed 20 points, 3 rebounds and 5 steals, Dort scored 6 points and 3 rebounds, and Halten had 2 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists.

After this game, the series score became 2-2, and both sides returned to the same starting line again. The fifth battle of Tianwang Mountain will be held at the Thunder home court, and the Pacers' situation is relatively unfavorable. According to the NBA's big data statistics, teams that win the Battle of Tianwang Mountain usually win the championship, while ESPN's prediction for G5 shows that the probability of the Thunder winning is 58.4%, and the Pacers are 41.6%, and the overall situation is more beneficial to the Thunder.

Judging from this game, there are four main reasons for the Pacers' defeat. First of all, there is the referee's penalty issue. Although the number of free throws and fouls seems to be close, in fact, the penalty in some rounds does tend to be more biased towards the Thunder, which affects the Pacers' fast-paced offense and slows down the pace of the game. Secondly, the Pacers' poor performance in the final quarter is also an important factor. For example, Matherine missed two free throws at the critical moment, causing the whole team to be silent. Third, the Pacers made up as many as 15 mistakes, giving them a chance to the phone. Finally, the Pacers fell sharply 33-43 on rebounds.

With a big score of 2-2, who can win the Battle of Tianwang Mountain? The famous basketball commentator Su Qun expressed his opinion after the game, believing that the Thunder has a higher winning rate, and there are three reasons. First, the Thunder have experienced similar situations in the series with the Nuggets, having lost in G1 and G3, but easily won in G2 and backed up successfully in G4, so they performed well in adversity, and the Battle of the King Mountain is expected to replicate the way they win against the Nuggets. Secondly, the Thunder have a singles expert like Alexander and can gain an advantage in a stalemate. However, the Pacers lack such players, Halliburton's singles ability is not as good as Alexander. Third, there were problems with the Pacers' tactics, such as Siakam had almost no touches in the final quarter. Su Qun's point of view makes sense. Siakam only scored 6 points in the second half and was running back many rounds. As the Pacers' main scorer, his performance is crucial.

Of course, many fans disagree with Su Qun's view, believing that Halliburton's explosive ability in the final quarter of the playoffs should not be underestimated. He led the team to reverse many times, so he cannot simply deny his singles ability.