Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander isn’t allowing fatigue to be an excuse after their Game 3 loss to the Indiana Pacers.
“You got to suck it up,” Gilgeous-Alexander said Thursday, according to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon. “There’s a maximum four games left in the season. It’s what you worked the whole season for. It’s what you worked all summer for. To me, the way I see it, you got to suck it up, get it done and try to get a win.”
The Pacers targeted Gilgeous-Alexander on both ends of the court Wednesday as they took a 2-1 lead in the Finals.
According to ESPN, Indiana began defending the MVP an average of 65.5 feet away from the basket when he was bringing the ball up, the furthest of any game in his career.
The Pacers only allowed SGA to bring the ball up 23 times, his second fewest in a game this postseason. They also blitzed him 12 times, the most he’s ever faced in a playoff game, according to ESPN Research. As a result, he was forced into six turnovers – a playoff career high.
On the defensive end, Gilgeous-Alexander was the primary defender for 22 field-goal attempts, his most in a postseason contest.
“I think we’re trying to make it tough on him,” Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard said. “The biggest thing is just you’re persistent, trying to make it tough on him. It’s a team job. We all have to be locked in and tied together on that end of the floor to get it done.”
The Pacers pulled away in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Thunder 32-18. Gilgeous-Alexander was held to three points on 1-of-3 shooting with no assists in the final frame. However, he doesn’t believe Indiana’s speed and physicality led to his subpar finish.
“I’m not too sure. I don’t think so,” Gilgeous-Alexander said when asked if the Pacers wore him down late. “It’s a physical game. We’ve had plenty of physical games. We’ve had games like that where I’ve been great late, games where I’ve stunk late. I don’t think it was anything out the blue, anything I hadn’t seen before.”
The Thunder will look to rebound Friday to even the series.
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