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After A Brilliant Performance, Russell Westbrook Fouled Away Game 4

It was such a shame, considering the game he had, but Russell Westbrook really screwed up at the end there. 43 points in 45 minutes will be overshadowed by the few moments where he forgot the rules of the game and needlessly fouled Mario Chalmers.

After a big defensive stand, the Thunder allowed Udonis Haslem to force a jump ball with less than a second left on the shot clock, which was pretty inexcusable. This set up a situation that not even I was familiar with: The shot clock reset to five seconds for the Heat. With only a three point deficit to make up, the Thunder would only have to hold the Heat for five more seconds (less than that, once the ball actually got into play) before getting a final shot to tie it.

Thankfully I didn’t feel stupid about not knowing the reset rule, since Russell Westbrook also had no idea this was the case. After the Heat won the tip, Westbrook fouled needlessly, putting the hot Chalmers on the line and the game out of reach.

Here’s what that looked like:

The fault for this loss should not fall only to Westbrook, who kept the Thunder in the game in the first place. Scott Brooks needs to make sure his players know that. James Harden needs to box out better. Shane Battier is playing like a man possessed by the younger version of himself. But when we look back at this game — which had “steal” written all over it for the Thunder, between their hot start and the fact that LeBron James was on the sideline for the end of it — we’ll think about that foul, and not the 47 minutes and change that came before it.

With a 104-98 win, the Miami Heat are one win away from a title. They can clinch it at home on Thursday.

Follow @ericgoldschein