Canada's Gilgeous-Alexander leads Thunder past Pacers for franchise's 1st NBA title in Oklahoma City
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The Oklahoma City Thunder are NBA champions.
The Western Conference's No. 1 seed defeated the Indiana Pacers 103-91 in Game 7 of the NBA Finals on Sunday to claim the second title in the franchise's history.
It is the first NBA championship the franchise has won since it was the Seattle Supersonics in 1979.
Star Thunder guard and 2025 NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, of Hamilton, Ont., led the way with a game-high 29 points in the victory.
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Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Oklahoma City Thunder win first NBA title with dominant defense in Game 7
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma City Thunder won their first NBA title with a heavy dose of an old standby –- their stingy defense. The Thunder, who led the league in defensive rating in the regular season and the playoffs, turned in another gem in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, a 103-91 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Sunday night. Oklahoma City held the Pacers to 41.4% shooting in the deciding game, far below the 48.4% Indiana shot in the playoffs overall. The Thunder forced 21 turnovers and blocked eight shots. 'You have to really grind it out,' Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. 'It's an endurance race. You have to be able to win in the mud. You have to be able to win ugly, have to be able to gut it out. That's what we did. The team did an unbelievable job of that.' The defensive effort, combined with another strong offensive performance by Finals MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, put Oklahoma City over the top. The Thunder became the youngest NBA champions since the 1976-77 Portland Trail Blazers, with an average age of 25.68 years. 'It's one of the biggest moments in city history,' Oklahoma City Mayor David Holt said. 'We've achieved sports immortality, and that will open doors in our community far beyond basketball for years, decades to come. It's a very, very special day we can build upon forever.' Chet Holmgren led the way with five blocks, the most by a player in an NBA Finals Game 7 since blocks were first recorded in the 1973-74 season. 'Honestly, I never really play for records,' the 7-foot-1 forward said. 'I never play for stats. All that will be forgotten. But us winning is forever. It's immortal. I'm just so happy we were able to do that together as a team.' Thunder guards Lu Dort, Alex Caruso and Cason Wallace each had three steals. Indiana played most of the game without guard Tyrese Haliburton, who suffered a lower right leg injury in the first quarter. Bennedict Mathurin did his best to help the Pacers stay in the game with 24 points and 13 rebounds. Another spectacular effort by veteran TJ McConnell prevented Oklahoma City's swarming defense from being even more dominant. McConnell scored 16 points on 8-for-13 shooting, confounding Thunder defenders with crafty moves around the basket. But he also had seven turnovers. 'Their pressure can really get to you, but I was just trying to be aggressive and had some uncharacteristic turnovers, but that happens,' McConnell said. 'Just proud of the fight. We fought to the end. Credit to OKC. They are just really good.' Pascal Siakam, who had caused problems for the Thunder throughout the series, was held to 16 points on 5-for-13 shooting. Dort, an All-Defense first-team selection, gave Indiana credit for hanging tough. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. 'I mean, they're a great team,' he said. 'They've got great players. I feel like we was just trying different stuff to mess them up and to disturb them. We threw them a lot of different defensive stuff. We were just trying to slow them down.' ___ Freelance writer Conrad Evans contributed to this report. ___ AP NBA:
Vancouver Sun
2 hours ago
- Vancouver Sun
Gilgeous-Alexander scores 29 points as Thunder beat Pacers for NBA title
OKLAHOMA CITY — Hamilton's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished off his MVP season with 29 points and 12 assists, and the Oklahoma City Thunder won the NBA championship, pulling away in the second half to beat the Indiana Pacers 103-91 on Sunday night. Gilgeous-Alexander added an NBA Finals MVP to his resume as well after claiming the MVP award in the regular season. Jalen Williams scored 20 and Chet Holmgren had 18 for the Thunder, who were pushed to a Game 7 brink in the NBA Finals — but finished off a season for the ages. Oklahoma City won 84 games between the regular season and the playoffs, tying the 1996-97 Chicago Bulls for third most in any season. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Only Golden State (88 in 2016-17) and the Bulls (87 in 2015-16) won more. It's the second championship for the franchise. The Seattle SuperSonics won the NBA title in 1979; the team was moved to Oklahoma City in 2008. There's nothing in the rafters in Oklahoma City to commemorate that title. Next October, a championship banner is finally coming. A Thunder banner. It was not easy to secure. The Pacers led 48-47 at the half even after losing star guard Tyrese Haliburton to what his father said was an Achilles tendon injury about seven minutes into the game. But they were outscored 34-20 in the third quarter as the Thunder built a 13-point lead and began to run away. Montreal's Bennedict Mathurin had 24 points and 13 rebounds for Indiana, which still is waiting for its first NBA title. The Pacers — who were 10-15 after 25 games and were bidding to be the first team in NBA history to turn that bad of a start into a championship — had leads of 1-0 and 2-1 in the series, but they simply didn't have enough in the end. Home teams are now 16-4 in NBA Finals Game 7s. And the Thunder became the seventh champion in the last seven seasons, a run of parity like none other in NBA history. Pacers forward Pascal Siakam was part of the Toronto team that won in 2019, Thunder guard Alex Caruso was part of the Los Angeles Lakers team that won in the pandemic 'bubble' in 2020, Milwaukee won in 2021, Golden State in 2022, Pacers forward Thomas Bryant and Denver prevailed in 2023 and Boston won last year's title. The Thunder are the ninth franchise to win a title in NBA commissioner Adam Silver's 12 seasons leading the league. His predecessor, David Stern, saw eight franchises win titles in his 30 seasons as commissioner.
National Post
3 hours ago
- National Post
GAME 7: Gilgeous-Alexander scores 29 points as Thunder beats Pacers for NBA title
OKLAHOMA CITY — Hamilton's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished off his MVP season with 29 points and 12 assists, and the Oklahoma City Thunder won the NBA championship, pulling away in the second half to beat the Indiana Pacers 103-91 on Sunday night. Article content Gilgeous-Alexander added an NBA Finals MVP to his resume as well after claiming the MVP award in the regular season. Article content Article content Jalen Williams scored 20 and Chet Holmgren had 18 for the Thunder, who were pushed to a Game 7 brink in the NBA Finals — but finished off a season for the ages. Oklahoma City won 84 games between the regular season and the playoffs, tying the 1996-97 Chicago Bulls for third most in any season. Article content Only Golden State (88 in 2016-17) and the Bulls (87 in 2015-16) won more. Article content It's the second championship for the franchise. The Seattle SuperSonics won the NBA title in 1979; the team was moved to Oklahoma City in 2008. There's nothing in the rafters in Oklahoma City to commemorate that title. Article content The Pacers led 48-47 at the half even after losing star guard Tyrese Haliburton to what his father said was an Achilles tendon injury about seven minutes into the game. But they were outscored 34-20 in the third quarter as the Thunder built a 13-point lead and began to run away. Article content Montreal's Bennedict Mathurin had 24 points and 13 rebounds for Indiana, which still is waiting for its first NBA title. The Pacers — who were 10-15 after 25 games and were bidding to be the first team in NBA history to turn that bad of a start into a championship — had leads of 1-0 and 2-1 in the series, but they simply didn't have enough in the end. Article content Article content Home teams are now 16-4 in NBA Finals Game 7s. And the Thunder became the seventh champion in the last seven seasons, a run of parity like none other in NBA history. Article content Pacers forward Pascal Siakam was part of the Toronto team that won in 2019, Thunder guard Alex Caruso was part of the Los Angeles Lakers team that won in the pandemic 'bubble' in 2020, Milwaukee won in 2021, Golden State in 2022, Pacers forward Thomas Bryant and Denver prevailed in 2023 and Boston won last year's title. Article content
