The Pacers continue to defy the odds in these NBA playoffs, pulling off an improbable fourth-quarter comeback for a fourth consecutive series and a second straight Game 1. Indiana didn’t hold a lead on Thursday in Oklahoma City until Tyrese Haliburton made a jumper that put the team up 111-110 with 0.3 seconds left on the game clock. It was the fourth time during the 2025 postseason that Haliburton has converted a game-winning or game-tying shot with less than five seconds remaining, notes Jamal Collier of ESPN.
“I don’t know what you say about it, but I know that this group is a resilient group,” Haliburton said. “And we don’t give up until it’s 0.0 on the clock.”
The Pacers turned the ball over 24 times and attempted just 82 field goals and 21 free throws on the night, compared to six turnovers, 98 field goal attempts, and 24 free throws for the Thunder. But a strong shooting performance that included a 46.2% mark from beyond the arc (18-of-39) kept Indiana within striking distance.
Haliburton didn’t play a major part in the Pacers’ three-point success, scoring just 14 points and knocking down 2-of-7 shots from long range. However, his teammates had full trust in their point guard when he raced up the court with the ball in his hands during that final possession.
“I swear as soon as he jumped up to shoot, I was like, ‘Oh, that’s good,'” Pacers wing Aaron Nesmith said, according to Collier. “Every time it’s in his hands in those situations, I just think it’s good.”
“(He has) ultimate, ultimate confidence in himself,” center Myles Turner added, per Grant Afseth of Hardwood Heroics. “Some players will say they have it but there’s other players that show it, and he’s going to let you know about it, too. That’s one of the things I respect about him. He’s a baller and a hooper and really just a gamer. When it comes to the moments, he wants the ball. He wants to be the one to hit that shot. He doesn’t shy away from the moment, and it is very important this time of the year to have a go-to guy. He just keeps finding a way, and we keep putting the ball in the right positions, and the rest is history.”
Here’s more on the NBA Finals in the wake of a thrilling first game:
- Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle, who has spent 23 seasons as an NBA coach and won a title in 2011 in Dallas, said on Thursday that he has a special appreciation for this Pacers team, as Afseth relays. “It’s a group I love,” Carlisle said. “It’s a group that we’ve invested a lot in — in how we were going to draft, who we were going to draft, and development. From a coaching perspective, I’m proud of this year because not only did we win enough games to get into the top four, but we are still developing players.”
- The Game 1 loss was similar to the Thunder’s other home loss during these playoffs, when they let a 13-point fourth quarter lead slip away in Game 3 of the conference semifinals vs. Denver, notes Tim MacMahon of ESPN. The Thunder came back in that series after falling behind 2-1 as a result of that home loss, so while they were disappointed by Thursday’s outcome, they’re confident in their ability to bounce back. “It sucks, but we have been here before,” Jalen Williams said, while head coach Mark Daigneault added, “We would’ve liked to win tonight, but tonight was a starting point, not an end point.” As MacMahon writes, Oklahoma City is 4-0 after losses during these playoffs, with an average margin of victory of 20.5 points per game.
- With Isaiah Hartenstein removed from the starting lineup and limited to just 17 minutes of action, the Thunder were out-rebounded 56-39 by one of the league’s worst rebounding teams. “Some of it is the cost of doing business,” Daigneault said of sticking with a smaller lineup, per Kelly Iko of The Athletic. “To be able to get perimeter speed on the court, get more switching in the game. It’s obviously something that is a tradeoff. I thought the small lineup at the end of the first half looked pretty good. That’s why I went back to it down the stretch. When we’re small, we have to be pressure-oriented and contain the ball. I thought they got some cracks against us that hurt us a little bit more than the post-ups did.”
- While Haliburton was the Game 1 hero, Andrew Nembhard deserves a lot of credit for helping the Pacers stay in the game and complete their comeback, according to David Aldridge of The Athletic. In addition to hitting a big three-pointer in the game’s final minutes, Nembhard served as the primary defender on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who scored 38 points but needed 30 shots to do it. “If there wasn’t the 65-game rule, he’s an All-Defensive guy, plain and simple,” Haliburton said of Nembhard. “We have the most trust in him. Shai is the hardest guard in the NBA. He’s the hardest guy to cover one-on-one in the NBA. So there’s no one look we can give him that is going to work every time. We trust Drew in those situations.”
- Amid myriad complaints on social media that Game 1 of the NBA Finals felt like just another regular season contest, Dan Shanoff of The Athletic offers three suggestions that the NBA and ABC could make for the rest of the series to improve the presentation, including putting the Finals logo on the court and showing the in-arena starting lineup introductions on the TV broadcast.
I still have no idea how Indiana won that game. xD
I mean, OKC shot poorly, which can happen, but they were outrebounded by how many boards? I did not expect that one. I mean, if a team shoots poorly, the opponent will likely have more boards as it’s easier to get the rebounds on your own glass, but they got 17 fewer rebounds than Indy?
When the first half finished, OKC led by 12 points, but the game was so one-sided that they should have led by 32.
I’m all for the drama and a long 6-7 game series, but damn that win by Indy was jammy :)
One player no one has mention for credit in this game is Toppin, the man had a terrible first half with 7 turnovers by himself of the 20 the Indiana Pacers committed in the first half. To come out the second half and hit five 3’s this was the turning point for the Pacers to make their comeback, before Haliburton nail the final shot.
Shot like complete ish on their own floor. Wide open looks too. If they just have an average night shooting they blow that pacers team out by 20 plus last night.
Just one of those strange occurrences. Good on Indiana for taking advantage of the situation. Happened with Denver too. If OKC wins game 2 then not much concern. Just win at least 1 in Indy and it’s a 3 game series where they have 2 of 3 at home.
Pacers have done it all playoffs long. Completely unbelievable, but they just keep doing it.
Great comeback by Indy last night. Great team effort & great shooting performance. All that being said I feel more sure about OKC winning this series now than I did 24hrs ago, even with them now down 0-1. Their team defense is too tenacious & Shai is just gonna carry these guys to victory. This Thunder team feels really similar to the 90s Bulls teams to me & I feel like this series could definitely go something like the 91 Finals.
Wild Wild Wild
9:30 Fourth Quarter: Thunder led by 15 points
Notice Carlisle did not call timeout on final possession of cavs, knicks, and okc comebacks. Just let it flow. Trust the players. Trust hali. Dont let the other tm gather themselves & create a defensive plan.
Only 2 head coaches have ever won titles with 2 separate tms. Phil & riley. Genius rick bout to be third
Its a mistake to call time out and let the other team adjust their defense. I don’t know why most coaches do that because its better to go against a team running back on defense than a set defense waiting for you.
An exciting game no one watched
Watched it. Sorry you missed it because it was awesome.
Lol, plenty of people watched.
More people will watch next game because of such a close 1st game abnd hearing at work did you see that shot.
The Pacers’ ability to come back down by double digits late in games is simply incredible.
Greatness!
Give the Pacers credit, OKC making a last-minute lineup change and sitting one of their Bigs for a smaller lineup. That move gave the Pacers an advantage on the boards. OKC only scored 11 points on 20 Indy first half turnovers, that was making for a closer game at the half, OKC normally would have been up by 20 to 25 points if they took advantage of the Pacers 20 first half turnovers. The Pacers were able to just hang around, then with 3 minutes left OKC could not protect the 15-point lead with both their Bigs on the bench, Pacers earn this victory, now we have to see if OKC changes back to their normal starting five. OKC learned if it is not broke, don’t fix it should have never changed their starting five. At least start the game with your normal starting five, then see if they can play with Indiana before going small.
I agree, I think that was a mistake on OKC’s part. Teams losing game 1 in the Finals lose the series 70% of the time.
Who called Pacers/Thunder Finals, with Pacers in winning in 4 like, 2 weeks ago? THIS GUY
Few are giving Indiana enough credit. They have lots of talent and play ULTIMATE TEAM BALL! Turner under the boards and from three. Now experienced Nembhard took over very well last year in the playoffs with Halliburton injured. Toppin who somehow NY traded away. Pascal Siakam in his prime. TJ and Mathurin and more. Plus with great Coach Carlisle they full court press and take off on offense faster than anyone. It’s championship coach, style and team.
Agreed , well said
That was the 1st game in Finals history where the winning team only led for 0.3 seconds.
That record is likely to last a long time!
I don’t know, the way Indiana is playing it might last one game.
@DaveyJ
Who asked?
Hali is him…
Bad execution followed by bad coaching on OKC’s part. How the OKC players let IND off the hook after how poorly the 1st half went… unbelievable. Then, to go small ball into IND strengths in the 2nd half, seriously? Overconfidence? Overwhelmed by the moment?
It seemed like the game was flowing, refs weren’t calling every little touch as a foul. That’s not SGA’s game. Let’s see if the refs change their calls in game 2 to accommodate the MVP.
Indy had all those turnovers yet OKC let them back in the game…