Arizona legend T.J. McConnell scored 12 points, had nine rebounds, six assists and four steals as the Indiana Pacers forced a game seven in the NBA Finals with a 108-91 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday night. McConnell's father, Tim, stole the postgame show on NBATV.
McConnell was instrumental throughout the game, finishing with three turnovers, two fouls and +10. ABC/ESPN NBA analyst Doris Burke repeatedly praised McConnell for his impact on game six. McConnell made six of his 12 shots from the field, but his father made sure to mention he missed his only two free throw attempts.
Tim McConnell referred to T.J. as a warrior and said that it doesn't matter how tall you are. Tim joked T.J. recovered after missing the two free throws and Indiana won the game so he can forget about the two foul shots. Anything can happen in game seven, according to Tim McConnell.
T.J. and his sister [Megan](https://stats.wnba.com/player/1642799/boxscores-traditional/) are part of a rare group of brothers and sisters to have played in the NBA and WNBA. Megan is in her first season with the Phoenix Mercury. Megan played collegiately at Duquesne, where T.J. played for two seasons before transferring to Arizona.
> "(My) Daughter was undefeated state championship. He lost in the state championship. We lost two games. So undefeated, he didn't play as well in the state championship. He played great but we didn't win it...She's with the Mercury....I can't be more proud to say I have a son in the NBA and I have a daughter in the WNBA. This is a dream come true and I'm going to OKC for my son to play in the championship game to win the world championship."
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> Tim McConnell on NBATV postgame
Tim McConnell is in the [Western Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame](https://westernpasportshof.org/tim-mcconnell-coach-basketball) as a basketball coach. McConnell coached Megan and T.J. in high school. The entire Pacers team was in attendance when McConnell was inducted into the Arizona Ring of Honor. That included former Wildcat Bennedict Mathurin.
McConnell earned second-team All-Pac 12 in 2014 and first team in 2015. In two seasons at Arizona, McConnell averaged 9.4 points, 5.4 assists, 3.7 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game. In four seasons at Duquesne, Megan averaged 12.5 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 4.6 APG, and 2.7 SPG.
T.J. is in his 10th season in the NBA, which made him eligible to be inducted into the Arizona Ring of Honor. Mathurin was previously inducted into the Arizona Ring of Honor as the 2022 Pac-12 Player of the Year and a second-team All-American. McConnell has played for Indiana since 2019.