Thunder, Pacers search for edge in Game 3 of NBA Finals
The Indiana Pacers are looking for a boost from being at home and answers for slowing down Shai Gilgeous-Alexander going into Game 3 of the NBA Finals.
With the best-of-seven series tied 1-1 nothing is settled, but the Pacers must rebound from a 123-107 thumping by Oklahoma City in Game 2, having stolen a 111-110 win in Game 1.
The Pacers led for just 0.3 seconds in Game 1 and a total of one minute and 56 seconds of a possible 96 minutes in the first two games.
NBA MVP Gilgeous-Alexander drove the Thunder to their big win on Sunday and has 72 points through two games, the most ever in the first two games of a Finals debut.
Pacers coach Rick Carlisle has constantly reminded his young team not to unpack any of the good, bad or ugly from the first two games as they embrace their home-floor opportunity on Wednesday.
"Everything that's already happened doesn't matter, other than the score of the series," Carlisle said.
Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton limped through parts of Sunday's loss as Oklahoma City pressured him with multiple defenders after he'd snatched victory with a heart-stopping floater to end Game 1 - his fourth game-winner of these playoffs.
Haliburton said on Tuesday he has a "lower body thing" impacting him but plans to play in Game 3.
Gilgeous-Alexander is expecting the unexpected.
"A series is so tricky. It definitely is a feeling-out," he said. "But there's also so many adjustments made to where it's almost hard to predict and try to determine what they're going to do with you. You kind of just have to be ready for everything."
Getting to the rim has been a tall order for Indiana. The Pacers have been outscored by 20 points in the paint.
But resolve has been a major trait helping define the team's success, and they're 4-0 in the playoffs following a loss.
To take control of the Finals, Carlisle is stressing the importance of tamping down turnovers without losing contact with the accelerator.
"This team that we're playing now presents unprecedented challenges because they've been turning everybody over through the entire playoffs," Carlisle said.
Oklahoma City's defensive approach is likely to be similar to Game 2 until the Pacers prove they can handle the on-ball energy.
But how Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault executes his plan is quite literally anyone's guess.
He used more than 700 lineup combinations during the regular season, more than any team in the league, and found unique groups to gain an edge on the boards in Game 2.
"We have a group of guys that are just ready to play," Thunder guard Jalen Williams said. "Everybody is kind of waiting for their opportunity.
"We have so many different lineups throughout the course of the year that nobody is shocked by when Mark wants to go small, change this around or do that."
Daigneault doesn't take credit for throwing a changeup or two.
"The general battle we're trying to win is the possession battle. There's different ways to do that," Daigneault said.
"We have optionality. Every game is different."
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The Advertiser
15 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Indiana set cracking pace to reclaim NBA Finals lead
Bennedict Mathurin scored 27 points off the bench and Tyrese Haliburton added 22 as the Indiana Pacers reclaimed the lead in the NBA Finals by beating the Oklahoma City Thunder 116-107 in Game 3. Haliburton also had 11 assists and nine rebounds for the Pacers, who got 21 points from Pascal Siakam and enjoyed a whopping 49-18 edge in bench points on Wednesday night (Thursday AEST), most notably from reserve guards Bennedict Mathurin (27 points) and T.J. McConnell. The Pacers, who lost Game 2 in Oklahoma City, improved to 10-0 since mid-March in the game immediately following a loss. "So many different guys chipped in," Haliburton said. Jalen Williams scored 26 points, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 24 and Chet Holmgren had 20 for the Thunder, who led by five going into the fourth. Game 4 is back in Indiana on Friday night (Saturday AEST). History says the Pacers are in control of the series now. In the 41 previous NBA Finals that were tied at a game apiece, the Game 3 winner went on to hoist the trophy 33 times - an 80.5 per cent success rate. It was back-and-forth much of the way, at times looking like an absolute classic. There were 15 ties. To put that into perspective, there were 13 ties in the five-game entirety of last year's finals between Boston and Dallas. The last time there was a finals game with more ties was in Game 1 between Cleveland in Golden State in 2018, which was knotted 17 times. McConnell finished with 10 points, five assists and five steals for Indiana. Since all those stats started being charted, nobody had ever come off the bench and done all that in an NBA Finals game. "Those guys were tremendous," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said of his reserves. "T.J. just brought a competitive will to the game. "This is the kind of the team we are. This is how we have to do it. We have to make it as difficult on them as we can." The Pacers' Aaron Nesmith fouled Alex Caruso - a hard foul, for certain - with 2:35 left, and officials took a long look to determine if it met the criteria for a flagrant foul. A common foul was the final call and instead of two free throws plus the ball, it was just two free throws for Caruso. He made both, cutting the lead to 110-104. But the Pacers - at home in an NBA Finals game for the first time in 25 years - kept control the rest of the way. Thunder coach Mark Daigneault must now rally his troops again. "I thought we had some really good stretches, but we just made one too many mistakes," Daigneault said. "And had one too many possessions on both ends of the floor where they were more tied to their identity than we were. But obviously, those are costly plays." Bennedict Mathurin scored 27 points off the bench and Tyrese Haliburton added 22 as the Indiana Pacers reclaimed the lead in the NBA Finals by beating the Oklahoma City Thunder 116-107 in Game 3. Haliburton also had 11 assists and nine rebounds for the Pacers, who got 21 points from Pascal Siakam and enjoyed a whopping 49-18 edge in bench points on Wednesday night (Thursday AEST), most notably from reserve guards Bennedict Mathurin (27 points) and T.J. McConnell. The Pacers, who lost Game 2 in Oklahoma City, improved to 10-0 since mid-March in the game immediately following a loss. "So many different guys chipped in," Haliburton said. Jalen Williams scored 26 points, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 24 and Chet Holmgren had 20 for the Thunder, who led by five going into the fourth. Game 4 is back in Indiana on Friday night (Saturday AEST). History says the Pacers are in control of the series now. In the 41 previous NBA Finals that were tied at a game apiece, the Game 3 winner went on to hoist the trophy 33 times - an 80.5 per cent success rate. It was back-and-forth much of the way, at times looking like an absolute classic. There were 15 ties. To put that into perspective, there were 13 ties in the five-game entirety of last year's finals between Boston and Dallas. The last time there was a finals game with more ties was in Game 1 between Cleveland in Golden State in 2018, which was knotted 17 times. McConnell finished with 10 points, five assists and five steals for Indiana. Since all those stats started being charted, nobody had ever come off the bench and done all that in an NBA Finals game. "Those guys were tremendous," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said of his reserves. "T.J. just brought a competitive will to the game. "This is the kind of the team we are. This is how we have to do it. We have to make it as difficult on them as we can." The Pacers' Aaron Nesmith fouled Alex Caruso - a hard foul, for certain - with 2:35 left, and officials took a long look to determine if it met the criteria for a flagrant foul. A common foul was the final call and instead of two free throws plus the ball, it was just two free throws for Caruso. He made both, cutting the lead to 110-104. But the Pacers - at home in an NBA Finals game for the first time in 25 years - kept control the rest of the way. Thunder coach Mark Daigneault must now rally his troops again. "I thought we had some really good stretches, but we just made one too many mistakes," Daigneault said. "And had one too many possessions on both ends of the floor where they were more tied to their identity than we were. But obviously, those are costly plays." Bennedict Mathurin scored 27 points off the bench and Tyrese Haliburton added 22 as the Indiana Pacers reclaimed the lead in the NBA Finals by beating the Oklahoma City Thunder 116-107 in Game 3. Haliburton also had 11 assists and nine rebounds for the Pacers, who got 21 points from Pascal Siakam and enjoyed a whopping 49-18 edge in bench points on Wednesday night (Thursday AEST), most notably from reserve guards Bennedict Mathurin (27 points) and T.J. McConnell. The Pacers, who lost Game 2 in Oklahoma City, improved to 10-0 since mid-March in the game immediately following a loss. "So many different guys chipped in," Haliburton said. Jalen Williams scored 26 points, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 24 and Chet Holmgren had 20 for the Thunder, who led by five going into the fourth. Game 4 is back in Indiana on Friday night (Saturday AEST). History says the Pacers are in control of the series now. In the 41 previous NBA Finals that were tied at a game apiece, the Game 3 winner went on to hoist the trophy 33 times - an 80.5 per cent success rate. It was back-and-forth much of the way, at times looking like an absolute classic. There were 15 ties. To put that into perspective, there were 13 ties in the five-game entirety of last year's finals between Boston and Dallas. The last time there was a finals game with more ties was in Game 1 between Cleveland in Golden State in 2018, which was knotted 17 times. McConnell finished with 10 points, five assists and five steals for Indiana. Since all those stats started being charted, nobody had ever come off the bench and done all that in an NBA Finals game. "Those guys were tremendous," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said of his reserves. "T.J. just brought a competitive will to the game. "This is the kind of the team we are. This is how we have to do it. We have to make it as difficult on them as we can." The Pacers' Aaron Nesmith fouled Alex Caruso - a hard foul, for certain - with 2:35 left, and officials took a long look to determine if it met the criteria for a flagrant foul. A common foul was the final call and instead of two free throws plus the ball, it was just two free throws for Caruso. He made both, cutting the lead to 110-104. But the Pacers - at home in an NBA Finals game for the first time in 25 years - kept control the rest of the way. Thunder coach Mark Daigneault must now rally his troops again. "I thought we had some really good stretches, but we just made one too many mistakes," Daigneault said. "And had one too many possessions on both ends of the floor where they were more tied to their identity than we were. But obviously, those are costly plays." Bennedict Mathurin scored 27 points off the bench and Tyrese Haliburton added 22 as the Indiana Pacers reclaimed the lead in the NBA Finals by beating the Oklahoma City Thunder 116-107 in Game 3. Haliburton also had 11 assists and nine rebounds for the Pacers, who got 21 points from Pascal Siakam and enjoyed a whopping 49-18 edge in bench points on Wednesday night (Thursday AEST), most notably from reserve guards Bennedict Mathurin (27 points) and T.J. McConnell. The Pacers, who lost Game 2 in Oklahoma City, improved to 10-0 since mid-March in the game immediately following a loss. "So many different guys chipped in," Haliburton said. Jalen Williams scored 26 points, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 24 and Chet Holmgren had 20 for the Thunder, who led by five going into the fourth. Game 4 is back in Indiana on Friday night (Saturday AEST). History says the Pacers are in control of the series now. In the 41 previous NBA Finals that were tied at a game apiece, the Game 3 winner went on to hoist the trophy 33 times - an 80.5 per cent success rate. It was back-and-forth much of the way, at times looking like an absolute classic. There were 15 ties. To put that into perspective, there were 13 ties in the five-game entirety of last year's finals between Boston and Dallas. The last time there was a finals game with more ties was in Game 1 between Cleveland in Golden State in 2018, which was knotted 17 times. McConnell finished with 10 points, five assists and five steals for Indiana. Since all those stats started being charted, nobody had ever come off the bench and done all that in an NBA Finals game. "Those guys were tremendous," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said of his reserves. "T.J. just brought a competitive will to the game. "This is the kind of the team we are. This is how we have to do it. We have to make it as difficult on them as we can." The Pacers' Aaron Nesmith fouled Alex Caruso - a hard foul, for certain - with 2:35 left, and officials took a long look to determine if it met the criteria for a flagrant foul. A common foul was the final call and instead of two free throws plus the ball, it was just two free throws for Caruso. He made both, cutting the lead to 110-104. But the Pacers - at home in an NBA Finals game for the first time in 25 years - kept control the rest of the way. Thunder coach Mark Daigneault must now rally his troops again. "I thought we had some really good stretches, but we just made one too many mistakes," Daigneault said. "And had one too many possessions on both ends of the floor where they were more tied to their identity than we were. But obviously, those are costly plays."
ABC News
18 hours ago
- ABC News
Tyrese Haliburton and Bennedict Mathurin star as Indiana Pacers take Game 3 against Oklahoma City Thunder
Bennedict Mathurin scored 27 points off the bench, Tyrese Haliburton added 22 and the Indiana Pacers reclaimed the lead in the NBA Finals by beating the Oklahoma City Thunder 116-107 in Game 3. Haliburton also had 11 assists and nine rebounds for the Pacers, who got 21 points from Pascal Siakam and enjoyed a whopping 49-18 edge in bench points. The Pacers, who lost Game 2 in Oklahoma City, improved to 10-0 since mid-March in the game immediately following a loss. Mathurin became just the third player to score at least 25 points off the bench in an NBA Finals game, joining Jason Terry and Manu Ginobili. Jalen Williams scored 26 points, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 24 and Chet Holmgren had 20 for the Thunder, who led by five going into the fourth. History says the Pacers are in control of the series now. In the 41 previous NBA Finals that were tied at a game apiece, the Game 3 winner went on to hoist the trophy 33 times. It was back-and-forth much of the way, at times looking like an absolute classic. There were 15 ties; to put that in perspective, there were 13 ties in the five-game entirety of last year's finals between Boston and Dallas. TJ McConnell finished with 10 points, five assists and five steals for Indiana. Since all those stats started being charted, nobody had ever come off the bench and done all that in an NBA Finals game. The Pacers' Aaron Nesmith fouled Alex Caruso — a hard foul, for certain — with 2:35 left, and officials took a long look to determine if it met the criteria for a flagrant foul. A common foul was the final call so instead of two free throws plus the ball, it was just two free throws for Caruso. He made both, cutting the lead to 110-104. But the Pacers — at home in an NBA Finals game for the first time in 25 years — kept control the rest of the way. AP
Perth Now
18 hours ago
- Perth Now
Indiana set cracking pace to take take NBA Finals lead
Bennedict Mathurin scored 27 points off the bench and Tyrese Haliburton added 22 as the Indiana Pacers reclaimed the lead in the NBA Finals by beating the Oklahoma City Thunder 116-107 in Game 3. Haliburton also had 11 assists and nine rebounds for the Pacers, who got 21 points from Pascal Siakam and enjoyed a whopping 49-18 edge in bench points on Wednesday night (Thursday AEST). The Pacers, who lost Game 2 in Oklahoma City, improved to 10-0 since mid-March in the game immediately following a loss. "So many different guys chipped in," Haliburton said. Jalen Williams scored 26 points, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 24 and Chet Holmgren had 20 for the Thunder, who led by five going into the fourth. Game 4 is back in Indiana on Friday night (Saturday AEST). History says the Pacers are in control of the series now. In the 41 previous NBA Finals that were tied at a game apiece, the Game 3 winner went on to hoist the trophy 33 times - an 80.5 per cent success rate. It was back-and-forth much of the way, at times looking like an absolute classic. There were 15 ties. To put that into perspective, there were 13 ties in the five-game entirety of last year's finals between Boston and Dallas. The last time there was a finals game with more ties was in Game 1 between Cleveland in Golden State in 2018, which was knotted 17 times. TJ McConnell finished with 10 points, five assists and five steals for Indiana. Since all those stats started being charted, nobody had ever come off the bench and done all that in an NBA Finals game. "We just had guys make plays after plays," Haliburton said. "Our bench was amazing." The Pacers' Aaron Nesmith fouled Alex Caruso - a hard foul, for certain - with 2:35 left, and officials took a long look to determine if it met the criteria for a flagrant foul. A common foul was the final call and instead of two free throws plus the ball, it was just two free throws for Caruso. He made both, cutting the lead to 110-104. But the Pacers - at home in an NBA Finals game for the first time in 25 years - kept control the rest of the way.
