OKLAHOMA CITY – The NBA’s best team, Oklahoma City, reasserted its excellence Sunday, leading for all of the final three quarters against the Pacers in a 123-107 win that evened the NBA Finals at one game apiece.
Here are three reasons why:
OKC Thunder remind us who they are
Indiana’s problems were not self-created Sunday, but instead a stern reminder of just how good the NBA’s best team can be.
A scattering of 3s kept the pace in the first half of the first quarter, with the Pacers even grabbing a 20-17 lead close to the quarter break. Then the Thunder turned it on, and the game turned hard against the visitors.
Reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander spent much of the opening 12 minutes purposefully bringing teammates into the game, passing up decent shots in favor of ball movement to make better ones for others. That brought Chet Holmgren into the game more meaningfully than was ever the case in Game 1, and did the same for Jalen Williams.
Then Gilgeous-Alexander shifted back into MVP mode, attacking ball screens and exploiting switches more quickly than the Pacers could call them out.
The result was a 42-21 Oklahoma City run after that brief Indiana lead, and a 59-41 halftime lead that felt more ominous than the 12-point gap at intermission in Game 1.
That night, the Pacers could identify a clear path back into the game, by eliminating their own mistakes. But this was not about what Indiana was doing wrong, but instead what the Thunder were doing right, and have done all season long. This was the series’ best illustration thus far of just how dangerous Oklahoma City can be.
Tyrese Haliburton kept in check again
His Game 1 heroics masked the fact that Tyrese Haliburton struggled for long stretches trying to assert control over the Finals series opener Thursday. Those struggles only deepened Sunday.
After hitting a first-quarter 3 that looked like it might get Indiana’s All-NBA guard some early rhythm, Haliburton didn’t hit another shot of any kind until the third.
When he drove, he found walled off lanes to the rim. When he passed, active hands directed and deflected action meant to create for his teammates. In Game 1, Haliburton still finished with 10 rebounds and six assists — in addition to that game winner — proof he could still impact the outcome significantly beyond the scoring column.
Haliburton never found that level of influence with the game in the balance Sunday. He enjoyed a late burst of offense Indiana will want to build on in Game 3.
A 3-point problem
There have been few cleaner indicators of success or failure for these Pacers in this postseason than the battle behind the arc. Indiana lost it Sunday night.
The Pacers finished 14-of-40 from 3, those makes not enough to create separation from Oklahoma City, who hit the same number.
In concert with their prodigious transition offense, the Pacers’ threat from distance has been their biggest collective strength in the playoffs. It’s simplistic but meaningful — the 3-pointer has given Indiana the ability to flip games in an instant, sparking some of these remarkable comebacks, or to take overwhelming control of those games in heavy wins.
Indeed, 10 made 3s in the second half of Game 1 provided the platform for Indiana’s latest revival.
There would be no such heroics Sunday, for a host of reasons. Oklahoma City’s defense played a role. So too did Gilgeous-Alexander, and in his absence during the game’s defining moments, Haliburton. The 3-point line posed a problem too. Indiana must restore that strength returning home midweek.
NBA Finals schedule: When is Game 3 of Pacers vs Thunder?
Game 1: Pacers 111, Thunder 110
Game 2: Thunder 123, Pacers 107
Game 3: Thunder at Pacers, 8:30 p.m., Wednesday (ABC)
Game 4: Thunder at Pacers, 8:30 p.m., Friday (ABC)
Game 5: Pacers at Thunder, 8:30 p.m., Monday, June 16 (ABC)
Game 6*: Thunder at Pacers, 8:30 p.m., Thursday, June 19 (ABC)
Game 7:* Pacers at Thunder, 8 p.m., Sunday, June 22 (ABC)
* if necessary
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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Thunder-struck: No miracle comeback this time as OKC buries Pacers in Game 2
Reporting by Zach Osterman, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
