BOSTON – For two days, Golden State striker Draymond Green saw him in teammate Stephen Curry. The fire Curry plays with isn’t always obvious to outsiders, but Green sensed it was boiling inside.
Their team fell to the NBA Finals, 2-1, and Curry would not let them lose the fourth game.
Friday night everyone else saw that excitement too.
After one of his two first-quarter triples, Curry screamed in the crowd full of Boston Celtics fans who had shown up early to chase him and his teammates. There was a long way to go in the game, one of the best of his illustrious career, but he called to send a message.
“I felt like we just had to let everyone know we were here tonight,” Curry said.
He added: “You can want it so badly, you get a little out of your way, and everyone feels a little bit of pressure, and you can go the other way. I wanted to try to take advantage of it in a positive direction so we can start the game.”
On Friday night in front of a hostile crowd in Boston, Golden State tied their series with the Celtics, 2-2, and regained the lead on the home court. Golden State won, 107-97.
Curry scored 43 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, becoming the only Warriors player to have at least 40 points and 10 rebounds in an NBA Finals game; Rick Barry did it in 1967 and Kevin During 2018. Curry, Michael Jordan and LeBron James are the only players 34 and older who have scored 40 points or more in an NBA Finals game.
As Golden State stretched their lead in the final minutes of Game 4, Celtics fans began to leave. When Curry was on the free throw line with 19.1 seconds left in the game, a “MVP” could be heard on the top deck of the arena.
The series will return to San Francisco for Game 5 on Monday, followed by Game 6 in Boston on Thursday.
The crowd roared in delight as Golden State finished off a spectacular series of passes through the middle to even the score for fc.
When Klay Thompson appeared on the pitch an hour before the match, a group of fans in the lower cup booed him. He recognized them with his arms and encouraged them to grow stronger. Green appeared a few minutes later and caused an even stronger explosion of abronons. Two nights earlier, Thompson had criticized the crowd for singing obscenities to Green.
The Celtics came into the game with the aspiration of giving Golden State their first straight losses in the playoffs this year. Prior to Friday’s game, Golden State had won all five games after this season’s losses.
But Boston understood the fierce grip that can have a 3-1 lead in a series to the best of seven.
“We understand we have a chance to do something special, to put some pressure on tonight,” Celtics coach Ime Udoka said before the game.
The Celtics gained confidence in the way they played the last game.
“We have to replicate what we did in the third game,” Celtics baseman Marcus Smart said Thursday. “We have reduced our turnover. We reduced our second chance points, offensive rebounds. We just controlled the game, the game we wanted to play. “
Golden State made a change to its starting lineup for the first time in this series in Game 4, replacing Kevon Looney with Otto Porter Jr.
This season’s playoffs have been marked by outbursts, and the Celtics have played in several of them, including the three that came during the final. Boston won Game 1 by 12 points, lost Game 2 by 19 and won Game 3 by 16.
But at first, Game 4 promised it could be a hotly contested match that would remain interesting until the end.
Boston’s Curry and Jayson Tatum scored 12 points each in the first quarter.
“Everyone was excited tonight,” Golden State coach Steve Kerr said. “By 2-1, we had to come out with a bit of despair and more physical than we showed in game 3. So it was a feeling of aggression and excitement for the whole team. It started from the initial tip.
“Steph obviously doesn’t show much excitement, but a night like this would justify it.”
The first quarter ended with Tatum passing the ball in the paint to Robert Williams III, who threw it to Grant Williams in the corner for a 3. Grant Williams’ 3 gave Boston a 28-27 lead over second quarter.
By half-time, the lead had changed hands six times and the scoreboard had been tied five times.
It was the turn of Celtics baseman Jaylen Brown to shine in the second quarter. He scored 10 points and Boston outscored Golden State by nine points when he was on the court during that quarter.
Boston had slightly stretched their lead in the half, to 54-49.
But Golden State would not go silent, especially not with Curry available. He had 33 points in the fourth quarter, after scoring 14 in the third.
The game was tied at 86 with eight minutes to go.
Thompson picked up his fourth foul with 5:33 at the end of the game. The crowd chanted the same obscene song they had directed at Green in Game 3, but replaced “Draymond” with “Klay.” About a minute later, Thompson’s triple gave Golden State a 95-94 lead.
Boston scored only once in the final five minutes of the game.
After Game 3 there were some doubts that Curry would be available for Game 4 because he injured his foot while fighting for a loose ball. Curry participated in the Golden State shootout Friday morning and was allowed to play.
After Curry’s performance on Friday night, the second highest-scoring final game of his career, the first question he asked Kerr at the post-match press conference was blatant about how he thought the Curry’s foot held. Kerr laughed.
“I think I was really working out there,” Kerr said. “He fought hard.”
Thompson was also first asked about Curry when he took the podium after the game.
“This man’s heart is amazing,” Thompson said. “You know, the things he does we take for granted from time to time, but to get out there and get on our backs, I mean, we have to help him on Monday. Go on.”