The Oklahoma City Thunder turned on the jets, pulled out all the stops and left no cliche behind in their blowout win over the San Antonio Spurs in Game 3 of the 2012 NBA Playoff Western Conference Finals. The Spurs had won 20-straight games prior to the loss which makes the defeat both remarkable and therefore also somewhat inevitable.
Over the years, we've seen great Spurs teams get blown out of playoff games and never skip a beat. Game 4 of this series will determine if this loss was a blip (most likely) or some kind of change in how this series will play out.
ECF Game 3: Miami Heat at Boston Celtics at 8:30 p.m. ET / 5:30 p.m. PT on ESPN
The Celtics hope they can do what the Thunder did and steal a game at home against a superior opponent. It will be a tall task since Boston couldn't win a game in which Rajon Rondo scored 44 points. Who else is going to give the Celtics consistent scoring? Maybe Brandon Bass is due for another big game.
Here's the remaining schedule for the 2012 NBA Playoff Eastern Conference Finals Series (all times in ET):
Game 4: Sunday, June 3 at Boston, 8:30 p.m.
Game 5: Tuesday, June 5 at Miami, 8:30 p.m.*
Game 6: Thursday, June 7 at Boston, 8:30 p.m.*
Game 7: Saturday, June 9 at Miami, 8:30 p.m.*
Here's the remaining schedule for the 2012 NBA Playoff Western Conference Finals Series (all times in ET):
Game 4: Saturday, June 2 at Oklahoma City, 9:00 p.m. ET
Game 5: Monday, June 5 at San Antonio, 8:30 p.m. ET*
Game 6: Wednesday, June 6 Oklahoma City, 9:00 p.m. ET*
Game 7: Friday, June 9 at San Antonio, 9:00 p.m. ET*
For more on the Spurs, visit Pounding The Rock. while Thunder fans should visit Welcome To Loud City. Celtics homers can head over to Celtics Blog, while for more on the Heat check out Peninsula Is Mightier.