Players can’t hide their emotions anymore. During Game 3, a few Spurs players raised their hands in disbelief when guarding Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Stephon Castle irritably shook his head after falling for an SGA pump fake to pick up his fifth foul the last time they met. Even on an inefficient shooting night, the Thunder talisman got his numbers. The stat fans focused on was the 12 free throws. It was clear from before Game 4 tip-off that Spurs fans were still carrying the anger from a few nights ago.

It started with pregame chants. As Shai Gilgeous-Alexander went through his routine, the partially filled Frost Bank Center erupted into “flopper” chants. It kept ringing throughout the arena, and as more people came in, the hostile reception kept getting worse. Amidst plain chants and remarks, one fan showcased her creativity to troll SGA.

A fan sitting courtside carried a replica of an Oscar award. The purpose: to instigate the four-time All-Star with the San Antonio Spurs, looking to avoid a 3-1 deficit. She tried her best to get SGA’s attention. The courtside fan flashed the trophy during one of his free throws in Game 4. Even while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ran back, she tried to get his attention. Such fan behavior doesn’t cross the line, although it does seem extreme.

The Spurs crowd was in unison in trying to put the former Finals MVP off his game. And they actually succeeded. SGA was held to just 19 points and 7 assists in 31 minutes tonight. In a must-win game for the Spurs, the crowd’s intimidation rubbed off on the entire Thunder roster. It wasn’t a fiesta night.

It was a sea of black Spurs jerseys, and there was a lot of booing anytime the Thunder got a foul call or tried to push the ball against the Spurs. As badly as the disruptions affected Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, he led OKC in scoring.

On the other side, Victor Wembanyama followed up on his promise. The Spurs cornerstone surely made his team better, recording 33 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 blocks in a dominant Game 4 display. The series will head back to Oklahoma, practically turning into a three-game series.

Mitch Johnson defended Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Game 3 tested the San Antonio Spurs and their fans’ patience. It wasn’t even the 12 free throws from SGA that seemed high. It was the fact that all of them came in the second half. They bunched up together, which, alongside a historic performance from the Thunder’s bench, kicked the Spurs out of contention. A few of those whistles were confusing. However, Mitch Johnson wasn’t giving excuses after the performance.

He wanted to look inward and set a challenge for his team.

“I think probably half of them were undisciplined first off the floor. He got us out of position and took advantage of it. Those 12 free throws helped out a lot, and I can remember at least a few in my head right now that were undisciplined on our end,” the Spurs head coach said after a Game 3 loss.

The ask was simple by instruction. Johnson didn’t want to see unnecessary fouls pushing OKC into the bonus. That is where Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s ability to draw fouls could see teams get stuck in a loop. The Spurs head coach wanted to see rigorous defense. That message was well heard by his players. In Game 4, OKC only received 18 free throws. San Antonio defended them without fouling. They also held the Thunder to shooting 33% from the field and only six made three-pointers.

They recorded only 82 points in Game 4, the lowest mark they have recorded in any game throughout the past two seasons. The Thunder didn’t have a game where they didn’t score at least 90 points in that stretch. However, the job’s far from finished. The two games won by the Spurs have shown how they either need double-overtime or a near-perfect team performance to beat the defending champions. They can’t lose focus for a moment in this one.

Who do you think moves to the NBA Finals from these teams? Let us know your views in the comments below.