Thunder beat injury-hit Pacers in game seven to win NBA title
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder puts up a shot against Andrew Nembhard in the Thunder's title-clinching victory over the Indiana Pacers in game seven of the NBA Finals
basketball
The Oklahoma City Thunder crowned a dazzling season with an NBA title on Sunday, pulling away relentlessly in the second half to beat the injury-hit Indiana Pacers 103-91 in game seven of the NBA Finals.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 29 points and handed out 12 assists and the Thunder's swarming defense finally proved to much for a Pacers team that lost talisman Tyrese Haliburton to a leg injury just seven minutes into the contest.
The underdog Pacers hung tough and held a 48-47 lead at halftime, but the Thunder out-scored them 34-20 in the third quarter and pushed the lead to as many as 22 points in the fourth.
"It doesn't feel real, so many hours, so many moments, so many emotions, so many nights of disbelief," Gilgeous-Alexander said, his voice breaking "It's crazy to know that we're all here.
"But this group worked for it, this group put in the hours and we deserved this."
Gilgeous-Alexander put himself among some of the game's greats as he earned Finals Most Valuable Player honors to go with his regular-season MVP and scoring title along with his first championship.
Jalen Williams scored 15 of his 20 points in the second half and Chet Holmgren added 18 points, eight rebounds, a steal and five of the Thunder's eight blocked shots.
A crowd of 18,203 at Paycom Center were given some tense moments as the Pacers chipped away at the deficit, but 23 Indiana turnovers leading to 32 Thunder points were ultimately too much for the Pacers to overcome.
The Thunder, who led the league with 68 regular-season wins, captured their first title since the club's controversial move to Oklahoma City in 2008, the franchise having won it all in 1979 as the Seattle SuperSonics.
The Pacers, three-time American Basketball Association champions in the 1970s -- remain in search of a first title since joining the NBA in the NBA-ABA merger.
Haliburton injured
Haliburton, already nursing a right calf strain when the Pacers won game six to force the first Finals game seven since 2016, had scored nine points -- all on three-pointers -- when he went down as he tried to drive past Gilgeous-Alexander.
Haliburton's right leg gave out and he sprawled forward, slapping the court in pain and disappointment.
Teammates gathered around him before he was helped off the court and to the locker room, supported and hopping on one leg with a towel over his head.
In his absence, the Pacers dug in. Down by three after the first quarter, they took a 43-42 lead on a three-pointer by Bennedict Mathurin with 2:02 left in the second quarter.
Oklahoma City would take the lead again before Andrew Nembhard drilled a step-back three-pointer with 4.3 seconds left to put the Pacers up 48-47 at halftime.
The first half featured 10 lead changes, both teams coming out with determination on the defensive end with everything at stake.
The three-point shot was an early difference-maker for the Pacers, who connected on eight of 16 from beyond the arc in the first half, but had just three after the break.
The Thunder struggled early from long range, but Gilgeous-Alexander made his first three-pointer of the night with 8:16 left in the third, Holmgren followed with a trey and Jalen Williams added another -- the quick 9-0 run giving Oklahoma City a 65-56 lead that set the stage for the rest of the game.
"We had 24 minutes to go get it -- we had 24 minutes to finish our season," Gilgeous-Alexander said of the Thunder's mindset coming out for the third.
"It was either gonna be bad or it was going to be pretty. We did everything we could."
Bennedict Mathurin led the Pacers with 24 points off the bench. Pascal Siakam and T.J. McConnell aded 16 points apiece and Andrew Nembhard scored 15.
But the famously resilient Pacers, who rallied from a 10-15 season start and authored a string of stirring comeback wins, finally came up short.
© 2025 AFP
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Japan Times
9 hours ago
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Pacers' 'hearts dropped' after Tyrese Haliburton's injury in Game 7
Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle said his team's "hearts dropped" after seeing Tyrese Haliburton exit early with an injury in their loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 7 of the NBA Finals on Sunday. Haliburton — the pivotal figure in Indiana's run through the playoffs — collapsed to the hardwood in agony early in the first quarter and did not return. The 25-year-old, who had been nursing a right calf strain since last week, hobbled off the court supported by Pacers backroom staff and was later seen on crutches following Indiana's 103-91 defeat. "What happened with Tyrese, all of our hearts dropped," Carlisle said in a postgame news conference. "But he will be back. I don't have any medical information about what may or may not have happened, but he'll be back in time, and I believe he'll make a full recovery." Haliburton's father told ESPN earlier that his son had suffered an Achilles injury. The Pacers said Haliburton exited with a "lower right leg injury." Carlisle, meanwhile, saluted Haliburton's role in an against-the-odds run to the brink of an NBA championship. "He authored one of the great individual playoff runs in the history of the NBA with dramatic play after dramatic play," Carlisle said. "It was just something that no one's ever seen, and he did it as one of 17. You know, that's the beautiful thing about him. As great a player as he is, it's always a team thing. So, our hearts go out to him." Carlisle said Haliburton had helped pump up the squad in the locker room at halftime, when the Pacers had taken a slender one-point lead at the break. However, the game swung decisively in Oklahoma City's favor after the Thunder outscored the Pacers 34-20 in the third quarter. "We needed to come out of the locker room and be better in the first five minutes of the third quarter. We just weren't," Carlisle said. "I don't have the whole sequence of events, but they made some great plays. We got off to a show start, and that quarter was the killer."
Japan Times
9 hours ago
- Japan Times
Thunder get past Pacers in Game 7 to claim NBA title
The Oklahoma City Thunder crowned a dazzling season with an NBA title on Sunday, pulling away relentlessly in the second half to beat the injury-hit Indiana Pacers 103-91 in Game 7 of the NBA Finals. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 29 points and handed out 12 assists, and the Thunder's swarming defense finally proved too much for a Pacers team that lost talisman Tyrese Haliburton to a leg injury just seven minutes into the contest. The underdog Pacers hung tough and held a 48-47 lead at halftime, but the Thunder outscored them 34-20 in the third quarter and pushed the lead to as many as 22 points in the fourth. "It doesn't feel real, so many hours, so many moments, so many emotions, so many nights of disbelief," Gilgeous-Alexander said, his voice breaking. "It's crazy to know that we're all here. "But this group worked for it, this group put in the hours, and we deserved this." Gilgeous-Alexander put himself among some of the game's greats as he earned NBA Finals MVP honors to go with his regular-season MVP and scoring title along with his first championship. Jalen Williams scored 15 of his 20 points in the second half, and Chet Holmgren added 18 points, eight rebounds, a steal and five of the Thunder's eight blocked shots. A crowd of 18,203 at Paycom Center was given some tense moments as the Pacers chipped away at the deficit, but 23 Indiana turnovers leading to 32 Thunder points were ultimately too much for the Pacers to overcome. The Thunder, who led the league with 68 regular-season wins, captured their first title since the club's controversial move to Oklahoma City in 2008. The franchise had won it all in 1979 as the Seattle SuperSonics. The Pacers — three-time American Basketball Association champions in the 1970s —remain in search of a first title since joining the NBA in the NBA-ABA merger. Haliburton, already nursing a right calf strain when the Pacers won Game 6 to force the first Game 7 since 2016, had scored nine points — all on three-pointers — when he went down as he tried to drive past Gilgeous-Alexander. Haliburton's right leg gave out, and he sprawled forward, slapping the court in pain and disappointment. Teammates gathered around him before he was helped off the court and to the locker room, supported and hopping on one leg with a towel over his head. In his absence, the Pacers dug in. Down by three after the first quarter, they took a 43-42 lead on a three-pointer by Bennedict Mathurin with 2:02 left in the second quarter. Oklahoma City would take the lead again before Andrew Nembhard drilled a step-back three-pointer with 4.3 seconds left to put the Pacers up 48-47 at halftime. The first half featured 10 lead changes, both teams coming out with determination on the defensive end with everything at stake. The three-point shot was an early difference-maker for the Pacers, who connected on eight of 16 from beyond the arc in the first half, but had just three after the break. The Thunder struggled early from long range, but Gilgeous-Alexander made his first three-pointer of the night with 8:16 left in the third, Holmgren followed with another 3-pointer and Jalen Williams added another —with the quick 9-0 run giving Oklahoma City a 65-56 lead that set the stage for the rest of the game. "We had 24 minutes to go get it — we had 24 minutes to finish our season," Gilgeous-Alexander said of the Thunder's mindset coming out for the third. "It was either gonna be bad or it was going to be pretty. We did everything we could." Mathurin led the Pacers with 24 points off the bench. Pascal Siakam and T.J. McConnell added 16 points apiece and Nembhard scored 15. But the famously resilient Pacers, who rallied from a 10-15 season start and authored a string of stirring comeback wins, finally came up short.
Japan Today
9 hours ago
- Japan Today
Thunder beat injury-hit Pacers in game seven to win NBA title
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder puts up a shot against Andrew Nembhard in the Thunder's title-clinching victory over the Indiana Pacers in game seven of the NBA Finals basketball The Oklahoma City Thunder crowned a dazzling season with an NBA title on Sunday, pulling away relentlessly in the second half to beat the injury-hit Indiana Pacers 103-91 in game seven of the NBA Finals. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 29 points and handed out 12 assists and the Thunder's swarming defense finally proved to much for a Pacers team that lost talisman Tyrese Haliburton to a leg injury just seven minutes into the contest. The underdog Pacers hung tough and held a 48-47 lead at halftime, but the Thunder out-scored them 34-20 in the third quarter and pushed the lead to as many as 22 points in the fourth. "It doesn't feel real, so many hours, so many moments, so many emotions, so many nights of disbelief," Gilgeous-Alexander said, his voice breaking "It's crazy to know that we're all here. "But this group worked for it, this group put in the hours and we deserved this." Gilgeous-Alexander put himself among some of the game's greats as he earned Finals Most Valuable Player honors to go with his regular-season MVP and scoring title along with his first championship. Jalen Williams scored 15 of his 20 points in the second half and Chet Holmgren added 18 points, eight rebounds, a steal and five of the Thunder's eight blocked shots. A crowd of 18,203 at Paycom Center were given some tense moments as the Pacers chipped away at the deficit, but 23 Indiana turnovers leading to 32 Thunder points were ultimately too much for the Pacers to overcome. The Thunder, who led the league with 68 regular-season wins, captured their first title since the club's controversial move to Oklahoma City in 2008, the franchise having won it all in 1979 as the Seattle SuperSonics. The Pacers, three-time American Basketball Association champions in the 1970s -- remain in search of a first title since joining the NBA in the NBA-ABA merger. Haliburton injured Haliburton, already nursing a right calf strain when the Pacers won game six to force the first Finals game seven since 2016, had scored nine points -- all on three-pointers -- when he went down as he tried to drive past Gilgeous-Alexander. Haliburton's right leg gave out and he sprawled forward, slapping the court in pain and disappointment. Teammates gathered around him before he was helped off the court and to the locker room, supported and hopping on one leg with a towel over his head. In his absence, the Pacers dug in. Down by three after the first quarter, they took a 43-42 lead on a three-pointer by Bennedict Mathurin with 2:02 left in the second quarter. Oklahoma City would take the lead again before Andrew Nembhard drilled a step-back three-pointer with 4.3 seconds left to put the Pacers up 48-47 at halftime. The first half featured 10 lead changes, both teams coming out with determination on the defensive end with everything at stake. The three-point shot was an early difference-maker for the Pacers, who connected on eight of 16 from beyond the arc in the first half, but had just three after the break. The Thunder struggled early from long range, but Gilgeous-Alexander made his first three-pointer of the night with 8:16 left in the third, Holmgren followed with a trey and Jalen Williams added another -- the quick 9-0 run giving Oklahoma City a 65-56 lead that set the stage for the rest of the game. "We had 24 minutes to go get it -- we had 24 minutes to finish our season," Gilgeous-Alexander said of the Thunder's mindset coming out for the third. "It was either gonna be bad or it was going to be pretty. We did everything we could." Bennedict Mathurin led the Pacers with 24 points off the bench. Pascal Siakam and T.J. McConnell aded 16 points apiece and Andrew Nembhard scored 15. But the famously resilient Pacers, who rallied from a 10-15 season start and authored a string of stirring comeback wins, finally came up short. © 2025 AFP
