
The Indiana Pacers defeated the Washington Wizards last night, 95-92, after Paul George led a furious comeback late in the second half.
The game was controlled from George throughout, but his team had difficulty supplementing the superstar. In fact, the Pacers starters scored 93 of their 95 points in Game 4. The Pacers’ bench scored a pitiful two points throughout the game.
With the lack of execution from the bench, the Pacers were in a huge hole going into the fourth. In the third quarter, the Pacers at one point only had a 2.4 percent chance to win the game:
How improbable was Pacer's win last night? Indiana had a 2.4% chance to win when it trailed 57-38 in 3rd qtr. pic.twitter.com/YCNSwAExRT
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) May 12, 2014
The win ultimately comes down to the phenomenal play of Paul George. Just how good was George last night? Unstoppable is the word to best describe his performance in Game 4. George racked in a career playoff high 39 points along with 12 rebounds. Look at his astounding shot chart from last night:
Paul George is 1st player in NBA playoff history to hit the 39-pt, 12-rebound, 7 3-pointers combo (via @eliassports) pic.twitter.com/veE4EK8Lyj
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) May 12, 2014
With the Pacers now up 3-1 in the series and going back home for Game 5, the Wizards will need to mount a comeback of their own if they hope to advance to the conference championship. Regardless, the Pacers need more production from their bench if they hope to continue to have success deeper in the playoffs.