Jalen Williams explodes for 40 points as Thunder 1 win from 1st-ever NBA title
Jalen Williams had a career playoff-high 40 points, MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 31 and the Oklahoma City Thunder moved one win from a title by beating the Indiana Pacers 120-109 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Monday night.
It was the 10th — and by far, the biggest — time the Thunder stars combined for more than 70 points in a game. Williams was 14 of 24 from the field, and Gilgeous-Alexander added 10 assists.
Pascal Siakam had 28 points for Indiana, which now trails the series 3-2 and will host Game 6 on Thursday night. TJ McConnell added 18 for the Pacers, who whittled an 18-point deficit down to four in the fourth — then watched the Thunder pull away again, and for good.
And now, everything favors the Thunder.
Teams that win Game 5 of an NBA Finals that was tied at 2-2 have gone on to win the series 23 times in 31 previous opportunities, or 74%. And teams with a 3-2 lead in the finals have won 40 times in 49 previous opportunities, or 82%.
But Game 5 was not easy. Far from it.
Down by as many as 18 late in the second quarter, the Pacers — the comeback kings of these playoffs, with as many wins in this postseason from 15 points down or more (five) than the rest of the league has combined, including in Game 1 of this series — did what they do, chipping away. And they did it with Tyrese Haliburton reduced to basically playing decoy on offense because of a leg issue that he aggravated in the first quarter.
Led by McConnell, who scored 13 points in just under seven minutes of the third, the Pacers got within five late in that quarter.
Then, Siakam went to work — a pair of free throws with 9:19 left got Indiana within four, then a 3-pointer about a minute later made it 95-93. In the play-by-play era of the NBA, starting with the 1997 playoffs, teams with leads of 15 points or more in the finals were 80-9.
Make that 81-9 now, and the Thunder are one win away.
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Winnipeg Free Press
4 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Gilgeous-Alexander supports Williams with 31 points, 10 assists to put Thunder 1 win from NBA title
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander became the NBA's Most Valuable Player this season primarily by being a dominant scorer. In Game 5 of the NBA Finals, he showed he's pretty good as a more traditional point guard, too. He had 31 points and 10 assists in a secondary role to Jalen Williams as the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Indiana Pacers 120-109 on Monday night. The Thunder took a 3-2 lead in the series and now are a win short of their first NBA title. Gilgeous-Alexander was the league's scoring champion this season, and he has led the team in scoring in all but four playoff games. Even when Williams has had breakout performances, they've largely been secondary to Gilgeous-Alexander's gaudy numbers. Not this time. Williams scored a career playoff-high 40 points, so Gilgeous-Alexander didn't need to force things against Indiana's constant double-teams. Gilgeous-Alexander still produced big numbers, going 9 for 21 from the field and making 13 of 14 free throws. But he was thrilled that Williams took the lead role. 'He can shoulder a load,' Gilgeous-Alexander said. 'I've said this before — he does so many things for us as a basketball team on both ends of the floor when he's the best version of himself … he was great tonight. Makes a world of a difference when he's that good, for sure.' It makes sense that Indiana paid extra attention to Gilgeous-Alexander, who joined Kobe Bryant, Hakeem Olajuwon and Michael Jordan on Monday as the only players with 15 or more games with at least 30 points in a postseason. But Williams solved Indiana's defense again in his third straight game with at least 26 points. And when the Pacers tried to rally in the fourth quarter, Williams scored 11 points in the final period and Gilgeous-Alexander had nine points and four assists. 'Thought those guys played really well in the two-man game,' Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. 'Controlled the clock, controlled the game down the stretch, paced us ahead of them.' It's all part of Gilgeous-Alexander's master plan. After last season's loss to Dallas in the Western Conference semifinals, Gilgeous-Alexander talked about stepping back a bit at times to help his teammates develop so they could be ready to help him at critical times. It all clicked for Williams at just the right time. He made 14 of 25 field goals and 9 of 12 free throws on Monday night. He said he's thankful to be in a position where his teammates want him to succeed. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. 'I'm just in a really, really good situation that's allowed me to grow as a player at a more rapid rate because I'm not worried about what if I fail,' he said. 'I know I have guys that pick me up when I fall short. I try and do the same thing for them. I think our team chemistry's something that's got us here, kept us strong.' Gilgeous-Alexander believes Williams has great games ahead. He hopes the next one is in Game 6 in Indianapolis. 'I'm not surprised by his performance tonight' Gilgeous-Alexander said. 'Like, the kid works super hard. He has the right intentions. He deserves this moment. Now with that being said, we got one more game to win, and I know he's not satisfied by this performance.' ___ AP NBA:
National Post
5 hours ago
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Game 5: Williams scores 40 points, Thunder one win from NBA title
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5 hours ago
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Article content OKLAHOMA CITY — Jalen Williams scored a career playoff-high 40 points, MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 31 and the Oklahoma City Thunder moved one win from a title by beating the Indiana Pacers 120-109 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals on Monday night. It was the 10th — and by far, the biggest — time the Thunder stars combined for more than 70 points in a game. Williams was 14 of 24 from the field, and Gilgeous-Alexander added 10 assists.
