The Golden State Warriors will get a statistical advantage in the best of seven series — and by extension a lead that is likely to evolve into a championship title. Warriors and Boston Celtics found themselves in a similar situation, with the finals tied 2-2 on Monday.
According to statistics provided by the NBA, the team that seals a victory in Game 5 after a deadlock takes the trophy — and bragging rights — 82.2% of the time. The stakes were high in Monday’s game.
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Boston Celtics players entered the court with statistics on their side. The Eastern Conference champions won five such games recently. However, four of these were home games for the Boston Celtics, which was not the case this time.
Boston Celtics had one more advantage. In the ongoing playoff season, the team had not lost a single game in succession. This means that if this streak continued, the Celtics were on track to clinch the championship.
The first four games in the NBA Finals between the Golden State Warriors and Boston Celtics were full of interesting statistics. The two teams were nearly tied on their cumulative score. The Warriors were also leading Celtics 422-421 as of Game 4.
Both the teams scored exactly 64 3-pointers in the four games that had been played before Monday. The warriors had a thin lead of 40-39 offensive rebounds over the Celtics.
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The Splash Brothers factor
If Steph Curry –Klay Thompson duo finds a rhythm, chances are the Golden State Warriors will leave their opponents far behind in the upcoming final games. Curry’s Splash Brother scored 18 points on a 7-for-17 shooting in Game 4. He added 21 points in Game 5.
Curry, on the other hand, scored a whopping 43 points with 10 rebounds in Game 4 and joined LeBron James on the elite list of having a 40-10 game in the NBA Finals. Curry’s performance in Game 5, however, lacked substance. He added 16 points.
