The Portland Trail Blazers staved off elimination and a clean sweep in the second round postseason series by beating the San Antonio Spurs in the fourth game.
The Spurs are still in control of the Western Conference series with a 3-1 lead and have the opportunity to finish the series in Game 5. No team has lost the series after taking a 3-0 lead, and it is unlikely that San Antonio is going to be the first.
Portland managed to contain Tony Parker, who was averaging 29 points in first three playoff games, in the fourth game to just 14 points. Kawhi Leonard also added just 11 points, seven rebounds and three assists.
"I just did my job," Portland's Nicolas Batum said. "My job was to slow him down. He's had a great series so far. He's a great champion. So I just tried to do my job and slow him down."
Parker credited the Trail Blazers for showing a lot of character in the fourth game. "You have to give a lot of credit to Portland," Parker said. "They played great, they came out of the gates. Batum was great, he gave them a big boost. He got on the boards and was everywhere."
Batum said the Trail Blazers are not under pressure and they will try to give their best in the potential series decider. "We had nothing to lose," Batum said. "We had no pressure. If we lose, we're on vacation. So we just went out there and played our game the way we're used to playing."
After dropping the first three games, Portland was the last team to take the series to the seventh game against the Dallas Mavericks in 2003, eventually going down in the decider.
Blazers' are just one loss away from elimination, but Wesley Matthews said the team is confident of pulling off an upset. "We are confident," Matthews said. "Someone has to make history at some time. Might as well be us."
Portland's coach Terry Stotts said the players are confident after winning the fourth game as they are yet to give their best.
"I think the win last night certainly gave us confidence. We hadn't put together a game yet, and we haven't played the way we know we can play," Stotts said. "I think not just getting that win last night, but more importantly how we got the win, just gives everybody a chance to exhale for a little bit and realize that we can get a win down here."
Where to Watch Live
The game is scheduled for a 9:30 pm ET (7:00 am IST, 1:30 am GMT) start, with live coverage on TNT in the US and Sony Six and Sony Six HD in India. The game can be watched via live streaming option HERE or HERE. The game can be live streamed by international viewers, including India, HERE.
