The Oklahoma City Thunder clinched their first title in team history after pulling away from the Indiana Pacers, with a final score of 103-91.
Both teams came out in the first quarter like you would expect. Both teams showed jitters at times, but both coaches had their teams prepared. Tyrese Haliburton came out aggressive, hitting three out of his first four shots from behind the arc. However, the mood would shift with roughly five minutes when Haliburton would go down with an apparent Achilles injury.
The Pacers would stay in the game, but the Thunder would ultimately be up by three at the end of the first quarter. Pascal Siakam rallied the troops and came out in the second quarter aggressively, Cason Wallace came away with his third steal of the half, and the pressure by the Thunder led to eight turnovers for Indiana in the first half. TJ McConnell seemed to be slowed down by the aggressiveness of Alex Caruso, which led to an apparent lack of energy.
Haliburton said earlier in this series that this team believes that they can win at any moment, and the team would prove that in the second. Andrew Nembhard would hit a huge three to put the Pacers up by 1 at the half with the score 48-47. The Pacers were led by Siakam with 10 points and Nembhard with 9. The Thunder were led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with 16.
The Thunder would start the third quarter doing what they have been doing all game long to Myles Turner, and that is bullying him near the rim. Chet Holmgren would secure a huge offensive rebound and bucket to take the lead. Turnovers would continue to plague the Pacers to start the third, and the Thunder jumped out to an early lead by five.
The Pacers would climb back to tie the game, but three straight threes would push the lead for the Thunder up to nine points after an 18-8 run, and a quick timeout by Pacers coach Rick Carlisle. Out of the timeout, McConnell would score four straight buckets at the basket, showing the tenacity he has for getting to the rim. He would chip in 16 points in the quarter. The Thunder would score 18 points off turnovers in the third quarter alone and would lead at the end of the quarter by 13.
The Pacers struggled to score in the fourth quarter after huge defensive plays at the rim by Holmgren. The intensity from the fans seemed to push the Thunder more and more, as the lead continued to grow up to 21 points. What also seemed to be inexplicable is that their star, Pascal Siakam, was off the floor for some crucial time during the late third and early fourth quarters.
Despite a push by Bennedict Mathurin continuously trying to will his team to the comeback, the Pacers ultimately would fall. The Thunder captured their first title in their team's history by a score of 103-91. The league MVP of the regular season led the way for them with 29 points.