Pacers 91 vs 103 Thunder Game 7 live online: stats, score and highlights NBA Finals
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It was a long time coming for this Thunder team that had been built from the ground up. They drafted a team worth of winning a championship, but it wasn't until SGA got to town that this team really became a true contender. Now they are champs, he is MVP and OKC is ready to party for the next few days.
What a season it was for SGA who won the MVP, Finals MVP and the scoring title all in the same year. That has only been done four times in the history of the NBA and the last time it happened was in 2000 when Shaq won all three.
THE OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER ARE YOUR 2025 NBA CHAMPIONS!!! OKC HAS THEIR FIRST TITLE SINCE THE FRANCHISE MOVED FROM SEATTLE BACK IN 2008.
The lead stretched out to 20 in the 4th quarter as the Pacers ran out of gas and out of scoring options. The Thunder defense smothered Indiana for the entire second half, allowing just 43 points in the final 24 minutes. It was a 19-2 run that capped the game and sent the Thunder rolling to their first NBA title.
SGA came up a point shy of his 16th 30 point game of the playoffs. He would have joined Michael Jordan and Hakeem Olajuwon as third player to reach 16 games of 30+ points, but winning the MVP and the the Finals MVP and his first NBA title isn't a terrible consolation.
WIthout Haliburton taking care of the ball was always going to be a problem. The Pacers were able to stay in the game despite turning the ball over in the first half, but the third quarter is where things got out of hand. They had 7 turnovers in the third quarter and the Thunder used that to stretch the lead out to double digits heading into the final 12 minutes.
McConnell would not give up. The rest of the team went cold, but he tried to put them on his back and carry them to the win. He had an incredible stretch in the third quarter, but not even his heroics were enough to keep OKC from building up a comfortable lead in the second half.
Three straiaght threes put the Thunder up by nine early in the 3rd quarter and OKC would put it on cruise control after that. For almost a quarter, the only Pacers player who scored was TJ McConnell. Meanwhile Chet, Shai and Williaims got hot and stayed hot until the final buzzer.
OKC's defense turned up in the second half, and the Pacers got a little sloppy at the same time. It led to a Thunder run that would be the turning point in Game 7.
The Thunder came out of the halftime break and looked like a different team. They seemed to lock in while the Pacers had to face the reality of having to play the final two quarters without Tyrese Haliburton, and momentum quickly shifted at the start of the third quarter starting with this buzzer beating three from Lu Dort.
The Pacers were able to hang on until the halftime break despite seeing Haliburton's devastating injury. The fought and fought until they just couldn't fight anymore. Indiana led after two quarters, but in the end they just didn't have enough with out the conductor of their offense.
Without Haliburton the Pacers needed someone to step up and that someone was TJ McConnell. He was so much more than just Tyrese Haliburton's back up. He came in off the bench and ignited this team in more than one game in this series and in this playoff run.
Talke about the MVP of the NBA and one of the best sidekicks in the league if you want, but it was the OKC defense was the key to success all year. Everyone from the MVP of the league to the last man on the bench committed to being a great defensive team and that's why they are NBA Champions.
Talk about SGA and Jalen Williams all you want, but Alex Caruso was the only one on this team who had ever been to the Finals before. The guy the young guns call "Unc" was pivotal not just in the Finals, but throughout the entire playoff run. He had 8 of his 10 points in the first quarter and helped set the tone.
The Pacers might have seen their leader go down, but they kept on fighting like they have all season. No one expected them to be in the Finals. No one expected them to take OKC to Game 7, and no one expected them to keep fighting after the Haliburton injury. Of course they were able to answer the call in Game 7, like they have all season long.
Seven minutes into Game 7, Tyrese Haliburton went down and stayed down. His calf strain turned into something much worse. He knew it as soon as he went to the ground. You could see him mouthing the words "no, no." On the replay you could see that all too familiar snap of the achilles. He knew that was the end of his playoff run, and most likely the end of the Pacers chances for a title. A tragic end to a magical season. It was hard to watch for a player who became the darling of the playoffs over the last couple of months.
Tyrese Haliburton had been battling a strained calf since before Game 6. He gutted it out in Indiana and gave it a go in Game 7 from OKC. He came out red hot, hitting three threes in the first few minutes of the game, but then disaster struck the Pacers conductor of the offense.
The Oklahoma City Thunder are NBA Champions for the first time ever!!! This young team was the best regular season squad, and they closed the playoffs out by lifting the Larry O'Brien Trophy after Game 7 of the NBA Finals.
You had to know it was going to be Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to set the tone after the Thunder lost Game 6 in Indiana. He was the MVP, and when it mattered most he delivered an MVP performance.
IT'S ALL OVER!!!
THE OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER ARE CHAMPIONS OF THE NBA FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HISTORY!!!
Mathurin to the line after the foul on Jones and he hits both FTs.
Mathurin hits the lay up.
Holmgren to the line after the foul on Toppin and he hits both FTs.
Siakam sends Williams to the line where he hits one of two FTs.
Willams to the line after the foul on Mathurin and he hits both FTs.
Nembhard to the line after the foul on Caruso and he hits one of two FTs.
SGA to the line after the foul on Nesmith and he hits both FTs. That's 29 for SGA.
Mathurin with a quick lay up on the other end and it's a 10 point game with 2:00 to go.
Holmgren streaks to the basket for a wide open jam off the make three.
Nembhard jacks a three ball and we have a 10 point game with 2:32 to go!
Holmgren to the line after the foul on Nesmith and he hits one of two FTs.
Timeout OKC with not inbound pass out of the made FT. We'll take a break with 4:11 to go.
The call stands and Mathurin hits both FTs.
SGA was called for a foul and the Thunder are going to challenge the call on Mathurin.
Timeout with 4:11 to go.
SGA to the line after the timeout and he hits both FTs.
Mathurin to the cup and he squeezes it on the left side drive.
Timeout Thunder with 4:45 to go it he 4th quarter.
Mathurin to the line after the foul on Dort and he hits both FTs
Dort to the line after the foul on Siakam and he hits one of two FTs.
Mathurin fouled by SGA and he hits both FTs.
Mathurin to the line after the foul on Holmgren and he hits both FTs.
Siakam to the line after the foul on SGA and he hits on of two FTs.
Siakam sinks the mid range jumper and finally someone scores for Indy other than McConnell in this second half.
Holmgren to the line after the foul on Turner and he hits one of two FTs.
Wallace with the offensive board and Williams drills a three ball from the wing!
Timeout Indiana with 8:27 to go!!
Wallace into the lane and he lays it up and in off the dish from SGA.
The call was overturned and OKC get the ball back.
Nesmith lost the ball on the three ball from the corner and it was ruled out of bounds for IND but OKC is going to challenge the call with 11:05 to go.
SGA on the step back three ball from the top of the key and he's got 25 on the night!
WE ARE AT THE END OF THE THRID QUARTER AND THE THUNDER LEAD BY 13 WITH 12 TO GO!!!
SGA missed the midrange jumper but Hartenstein was there for the tip in.
Timeout OKC with 35 seconds to go in the 3rd quarter.
Williams gets the roll on the step back from the FT line.
McConnell pulls up and hits the jumper from the elbow! He's got 12 in the 3rd quarter.
Williams with the scoop and score on the left side and the Pacers need a timeout with 1:56 to go in the 3rd quarter!
Hartenstein with the pick off the McConnell pass and Wallace lays it up and in on the break!
Wallace drills a three ball from the corner off the kick out from Hartenstein!
McConnell pulls up and hits another jumper, this time from the baseline! He's got the last 10 for IND.
SGA to the line and he hits one of two after the foul on Turner.
McConnell back to the cup and he lays it up and in.
SGA hits Holmgren on the slash to the bucket and he soars to the cup for the jam.
McConnell pulls up in the lane and drops it over the defender.
McConnell on the drive and scoop from the right side and he somehow got it to drop.
SGA into the lane and he lays it up and in. He's got 21 and 9 assists in Game 7.
McConnell to the bucket out of the break and he lays it up and in.
SGA with a kick out for Williaims and he gets the roll off the corner three ball!
9-0 run from OKC and the Pacers call timeout with 7:16 to go in the 3rd quarter!!
SGA finds Holmgren from the wing and he strings the three ball!
SGA answers back with a three ball off the step back from the top of the key!
PIck and pop from Turner and he drills the three off the feed from Nembhard!
Nembhard to the line after the foul on Holmgren and he hits both FTs.
Williams with the steal and he somehow got it to fall even though Mathurin was there for the block.
Timeout Pacers with 9:20 to go in the 3rd quarter.
Caruso follows his own miss and tips it back in down low.
Maturin got blocked down low but it fell to Siakam and he hits the three ball from the wing!
Dort with the offensive rebound off the miss from Williams and he end up drilling the buzzer beater three ball from the logo!
Holmgren gets the put back to go after getting the offensive board off the SGA missed three.
WE ARE BACK IN OKC FOR THE SECOND HALF OF GAME 7!!!
The Pacers lead by one in Game 7 of the NBA Finals. They are without their star. They are without their leader, but they are still up after 24 minutes. Can they hold on or will it be the home side taking control in the final two quarters.
Mathurin might be the guy who leads the Pacers to the win tonight. He has done it already with a 27 in Game 3. Indy would love to see him get hot in the second half after an 8 point half in Game 7.
It's going to be up to these two guys tonight. McConnell and Nembhard have to be great i the absence of Haliburton. Nembhard had 9 points and 4 rebounds and McConnell had 4, 3 and 3 off the bench.
There was a moment in time where the Thunder looked like maybe they might pull away with the injury hit to Indy but the Pacers stayed in the game despite seeing their guy go down.
This was the moment that everything came to a halt for the Indiana Pacers. At least for a few moments. Their floor general and their leader Tyrese Halburton suffered what appeared to be an achilles injury that will keep him out for the rest of the game. He had 9 points in 7 minutes. Devastating to see for the Pacers, but they are still in this game and they have a chance to win it for their fallen soldier.
Siakam knew it was going to be up to him, with or without Haliburton. He's doing his part with 10 points in the first quarter but everyone else has been stepping up for Indy.
Haliburton made it through Game 6 with a calf strain, and gutted it out coming out for Game 7 and had 9 points on 3/4 shooting from downtown.
Of course it was going to be SGA starting the scoring for OKC in Game 7. He's been the same ole' MVP that he's been all season with 16 points in the first half, but he needs some help.
OKC may have been back home for Game 7, but the Pacers had all the momentum coming into the game following their comfortable win over the Thunder in Indy. Nembhard opened up the scoring and he's got 9 points for Indy.
WE ARE AT THE HALFTIME BREAK AND THE PACERS LEAD BY A POINT EVEN AFTER SEEING TYRESE HALIBURTON GO DOWN WITH A SERIOUS INJURY!!!
Nembhard drills the step back three ball from the wing and he hits the pull up over Holmgren!!!
SGA to the line after the foul on Nembhard and he hits both FTs.
Hartenstein gets the bucket to go down low and one! FT is good after the foul on Toppin.
Wallace sends Siakam to the line where he hits both FTs. 9-2 run for Indy over the last few minutes.
Mathurin strings a three ball from the wing off the pull up over SGA!
SGA down low where he put it up and had it blocked by Turner who was called for a goaltend.
McConnell gets into the lane and hits the pulll up from the FT line over Caruso.
Turner hits the FT jumper off the feed from McConnell.
Dort comes out of the break with a three ball and the Thunder lead by four with 4:30 to go.
Nembhard down the lane and he lays it up and in off the glass.
Timeout Thunder with 5:22 to go in the 2nd quarter.
McConnell drives baseline and reverses it up over Holmgren on the lay up.
Turner to the line after the foul on Wallace but he misses both FTs.
SGA with a block on one end and the dish to Wallace who drains the three on the other end!
SGA steps back from the elbow and hits the mid range jumper. He's got 12 and the Pacers take a timeout with 7:14 to go in the 2nd quarter.
Nesmith drills the three ball off the offensive rebound and kick out from Turner!
SGA to the line after the foul on Nembhard and he hits both FT.
Turner to the line after the foul on Wiggins and he hits one of two FTs.
Williams sent to the line after the foul on Sheppard and he hits one of two FTs.
Hartenstein cuts to the bucket and Williams found him for the jam.
Bradley to the line after the foul on Wiliams and he hits both FTs.
Caruso on the back door cut and Hartenstein found him for the jam on the baseline.
This just hurts to watch. As a sports fan and as a human. Tyrese Haliburton has given everything for this team and to have it end in Game 7 of the NBA Finals is absolutely gut wrenching.
Siakam to the line after the foul on Wallace and he hits one of two FTs.
Mathurin strings a three ball to open up the second quarter with a three ball to even up the score.
Haliburton had 9 points in the first quarter and was the protagonist in the first 12 minutes for the Pacers, but he went down an it looks like he won't be coming back. Siakam has 7 while SGA has 8 and Alex Caruso has 5 off the bench.
Haliburton just went down at the end of the first quarter and that looked paintful to even watch.
Injury report: Thunder
It is the final game of the season and something has to be said for the Thunder’s ability to stay healthy throughout the playoffs. Usually it is the healthiest team that wins it all and the Thunder have been the healthiest team throughout the playoffs. Tonight, like most of the other nights in this postseason run they have all hands on deck and they are going to need the against a Pacers team that continues to pull surprise after surprise.
Injury report: Indy
So Tyrese Haliburton is listed on the injury report as questionable but we all know he is playing. Out side of that, the injure report looks basically the same as it has all series long. Jarace Walker is out with a sprained ankle that he suffered in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals, but he has been on the bench playing cheerleader for his guys for the last six games. He wasn’t a huge piece of the puzzle of the bench, and the Pacers have proven that they can live without him.
OKC at home
The Oklahoma City Thunder have earned the right to be in this position. They are back home for Game 7 of the NBA Finals because they were the best team in the league. They lost just 14 games all regular season. Of those 14 games, they lost just 6 at home. In the postseason they have lost just two games at the Paycom Center. One of those came in Game 1 against the Denver Nuggets and the other came against the Pacers in the NBA Finals series opener. The other worrying stat for Indy is the face that OKC has only lost back to back games twice since the start of the season. Once back in November when they lost to Dallas and San Antonio and then in April when they lost to Houston and LA, but they already had the one seed locked up.
Game 7 history at home
The Indiana Pacers went home facing elimination in Game 6, and they didn’t just beat the Thunder, they crushed them. From start to finish the Pacers dominated that game and stayed alive to force a Game 7. They might have a little momentum coming into this game, but they need to ignore the historical trend that heavily favors the home side in Game 7s of the NBA Finals. Here are all the facts and stats that will explain how tonight is going to be an uphill battle for the Pacers.
The historic double dip
The Thunder are a game away from their first title in the history of the city. You can’t say the franchise because the Seattle SuperSonics won a title before the franchise came to OKC. After an era of title contenders the team faded into oblivion until SGA and the draft picks that the Thunder invested in grew up. Now SGA is the MVP of the league, and has a chance to be the Finals MVP. There are only a few players in the history of the league who can say that. Here is the list.
SGA’s historic run
SGA is in the midst of one of the most impressive playoff runs in history. He has scored 30+ points in 15 postseason games, which put’s him on an exclusive list of some of the best basketball players to ever step on the court. If he gets 30+ tonight, he will become one of three players to drop 30+ 16 times during a title run. Here is a list of the elite players SGA can join if he reaches his season average tonight. Of course, he’ll be much more interested in winning the title than anything else, but usually him scoring 30+ is synonymous with the Thunder winning.
Haiburton’s status
We didn’t know if Tyrese Haliburton was going to play in Game 6, and if he did we didn’t know how effective he would be with his calf strain hindering him. He played. He started. He shined. It was not have been his most impressive game statistically but the shots he made, the energy he played with and the inspiration he spread throughout the team was priceless. Tonight, he is going to lace them up again for the final 48 minutes of the season. Like last game we are going to have to see how he is moving in the opening minutes to get an idea of just how mobile and effective he can be.
Star watch: Thunder
It’s time for the MVP to be the MVP. Game 7. At home. Coming off of a game in which he was held to 21 points and just 15 field goals, you can bet SGA has been itching for this game to tip off. He turned the ball over 8 times as the Pacers defense swarmed him from start to finish. Tonight, you have to expect that he’s going to be locked in from the start, and if he is locked in the Thunder will be locked it. SGA is on the precise of winning the MVP and the Finals MVP in the same season, but he is going to have lead his team to victory tonight to complete the double dip.
Star watch: Pacers
We have to put Tyrese Haliburton back in the star watch spotlight after giving him a game off in Game 6. He was nursing a calf strain and we weren’t sure if we was going to play or not, but he played and he was fantastic. He is the motor that this team runs off of. He had 14 points and 5 assists, but he was aggressive on the defensive end, and impactful on and off the court for his team. He is going to have to play like he did in Game 6, if not better if he and the Pacers are going to be lifting their first Larry O’Brien Trophy.
Series recap
What a wild series it has been. While there were a lot of people moaning about two small market teams in the NBA Finals, these two teams have delivered a fantastic series. It started with the Haliburton game winner on the road in Game 1. OKC hit back and evened the series at 1-1 after that. Indy took Game 3 in their first Finals game at home since 2000, and had a shot at Game 4, but blew a double digit 4th quarter lead as the Thunder evened up the series for Game 5 in OKC. Williams went for 40 and SGA had 31 in the Game 5 win, and the Thunder had a chance to close it out last game, but the Pacers blew them out to force the first NBA Finals Game 7 since 2016.
Game 6: recap
Like most of the first five games of the series, the OKC Thunder came out and landed the first blow of the game taking a 10-2 lead, but Andrew Nembhard hit two threes and had eight straight points to put Indy ahead and they never looked back from there. Haliburton battled through a calf strain and seemed to inspire his teammates as everyone rose to the occasion to keep this Finals series alive. The Pacers ended the first half on a 30-9 run, taking a 22 point lead into the halftime break, and the Thunder were never able to come close. SGA and Jalen Williams were kept in check while for a Thunder team that gave up 21 turnovers. Obie Toppin was the leading scorer for Indy with 20 points, but six players had 10+ points for Indy.
We are live from OKC
Hello everyone and welcome to Paycom Center where the Oklahoma City Thunder are back home for Game 7 of the NBA Finals. The Thunder earned this honor after being the best team in the league all season, and tonight they have a chance to close out the Pacers and bring the first NBA title to Oklahoma City in front of a rampant Paycom Center crowd. The Pacers have been counted out all series, and that was the case again on Thursday night in Indy. With a banged up Tyrese Haliburton, and a blown lead in the 4th quarter of Game 5, OKC looked to have all the momentum. The Pacers didn’t just survive, they crushed the Thunder to force tonight’s Game 7.
Pacers vs. Thunder Game 7
This series has been as unpredictable as any we have seen in recent history, and after six games we have the final we deserve. A Game 7 from Oklahoma City to determine the champion of the NBA. There will be a winner crowned by the end of the night. The question is, will it be the Oklahoma City Thunder or will is be the Indiana Pacers? AS English will be with you all night long providing live coverage, stats, highlights and analysis of tonight’s title decider from Paycom Center.