OKLAHOMA CITY — Tyrese Haliburton and the never-say-die Indiana Pacers pulled off yet another last-second comeback, this time on the NBA’s biggest stage.
Haliburton’s 21-foot jumper with three-tenths of a second left gave Indiana its first and only lead Thursday night, and the Pacers stunned the Oklahoma City Thunder 111-110 in Game 1 of the NBA Finals after a comeback for the ages.
“Man, basketball’s fun,” Haliburton said. “Winning is fun.”
Especially like this.
The Pacers turned the ball over 25 times, trailed by 15 points in the fourth quarter against the team with the best home record in the NBA this season and had no answers for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the league MVP who scored a game-high 38 points.
However, the visitors had the league’s new Mr. Big Shot: Haliburton, who has now had one of these moments in every series the Eastern Conference champions have played during this postseason.
In a first-round game on April 29, Indiana trailed the Milwaukee Bucks 118-111 with 34.6 seconds left in overtime. Haliburton scored with 1.4 seconds remaining, and the Pacers won 119-118.
In the conference semifinals on May 6, Indiana trailed the Cleveland Cavaliers 119-112 with 48 seconds left and won 120-119. Haliburton hit the winner with 1.1 seconds to play.
In the East’s title round on May 21, Indiana trailed the New York Knicks 121-112 with 51.1 seconds left in regulation. Haliburton sent it to overtime on a jumper with no time on the clock; Indiana won 138-135.
And now this.
“We’ve had lots of experience in these kinds of games,” Indiana coach Rick Carlisle said.
The Pacers were down by 15 with 9:42 left Thursday. Their rally is the biggest in the fourth quarter of any NBA Finals game since the Dallas Mavericks also came from 15 down to beat the Miami Heat on June 2, 2011.
Carlisle coached those Mavericks. Well, here he is again.
“That’s a really good team,” Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault said. “Credit them for not only tonight but their run. They’ve had so many games like that that have seemed improbable. And they just play with a great spirit and they keep coming. They keep playing.”
Pascal Siakam led the Pacers with 19 points, Obi Toppin scored 17, Myles Turner had 15, and Haliburton and Andrew Nembhard each had 14.
Jalen Williams scored 17 and Lu Dort added 15 for Oklahoma City, which was 36-1 at home with 15-point leads this season.
Game 2 is Sunday night, also in Oklahoma City before the best-of-seven series shifts to Indianapolis for the next two games.
“This is going to be a long journey and a lot going on,” Carlisle said. “So we’re just going to have to keep our eye on the ball and keep focusing on one another.”
The Thunder led by 15 early in the fourth quarter when Carlisle called a timeout and subbed for all five Indiana players, seeking a spark. It worked. The Pacers outscored the Thunder 15-4 over the next 3:26, getting within 98-94 on a 3 by Turner with 6:16 left.
They weren’t done. And in the final second, they found a way. Again.
“We had control of the game for the most part,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Now, it’s a 48-minute game. And they teach you that lesson more than anyone else in the league — the hard way.”