When an NBA team goes up 3-0 in a playoff series, it has to fight off complacency, boredom and the tendency to feel comfortable. In turn, the team facing elimination in that series tends to play like a bunch of wounded animals in Game 4 with its season on the line.
That is apparently what happened in Game 4 between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Houston Rockets on Sunday. With the Lakers going for a sweep, Houston thoroughly controlled the majority of the game and claimed a 115-96 win to stay alive.
It was a game marred by some excess physicality on both sides. In the third quarter, Deandre Ayton, who was having one of his best games in many weeks, elbowed Alperen Sengun in the head and was ejected after the referees called him for a flagrant 2 foul. That decision surprised many, including even Rockets coach Ime Udoka. Late in the fourth quarter, another incident resulted in Lakers rookie Adou Thiero and Houston guard Aaron Holiday getting tossed.
After the game, Ayton explained what led to the elbow to the head he delivered. He also said that, overall, he and his teammates are “pretty angry” and he’s very ready for Game 5, which will take place on Wednesday.
“Tonight definitely didn’t make us feel comfortable,” Ayton stated. “We’re pretty angry. I’m pretty angry. Honestly, I wish we could play tomorrow. I have a lot of energy now. But we’re gonna go back, watch the film, and really turn up our level of intensity a little bit higher as well. We’ll have our fans out there chanting for us; [it should be] quite a game.”
Overall, the Lakers put forth a poor performance on Sunday. They committed 24 turnovers, which led to 30 points off turnovers for Houston, and they shot just 22.7% from 3-point range. Overall, only Ayton, Rui Hachimura and Jarred Vanderbilt played up to their usual standards.
While Los Angeles is still in control of this series, there will be a real sense of urgency for it to win Game 5 at home. Another loss would result in L.A. facing the majority of the pressure and possibly the Rockets believing they can become the first NBA team to win a series after being down 3-0.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Deandre Ayton: Lakers are ‘pretty angry’ after Game 4 loss