When Tyrese Haliburton rose from five metres out with a second to go and Wallace failed to get his shot off, it was clear to all and sundry that the shot would go in. You didn’t have to be a soothsayer to get it right.
It was a combination of the team that has mastered the art of comebacks in this championship series and one of the most accurate players in ‘clutch time’, the time when games are decided. And yes, of course it went in.
The Pacers won (110-111) and thus took the lead in the NBA Finals after completing yet another comeback. It was the fifth game in which they came back from at least 15 points down to win, a record in NBA history since 1998. No one had done it so many times in the last 27 years. And it is the third time in an NBA Finals since 1971 that someone has come back from 15 points down in the fourth quarter.
Three comebacks for the history books
Indiana’s run stopped being a miracle a long time ago. If there is one team that never stops believing, it is them. They proved it in the first round of these playoffs when in the fifth game against the Milwaukee Bucks (April 29), they were down by seven (118-111) with 34.6 seconds left in overtime. Haliburton scored with 1.4 seconds left and the Pacers won 119-118 and finished the series (4-1).
We have a lot of experience in this type of match
They repeated the feat in the second game of the Eastern Conference semifinals against the Cleveland Cavaliers on May 6, when they trailed by 14 points in the third quarter and by seven with 48 seconds remaining (119-112). They ended up winning 120-119. Haliburton scored the game-winning basket with 1.1 seconds left. They resurrected themselves and put a 0-2 lead in the series against the second best team of the regular season, which ended up succumbing in the series (1-4).
And on May 21, in the first game of the Eastern Conference finals against the New York Knicks, they went one step further after coming back from nine points down with 51.1 seconds left. They were losing 121-112, but Tyrese Haliburton brought his team back to life with a buzzer-beater that sent the game into overtime (it could have been the winner because he just barely stepped on the three-point line), in which they sealed the victory (138-135)
It’s a really good team, you have to give them credit not only for tonight, but also for their streak. They play with great spirit and keep fighting
“We have a lot of experience in these types of games,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. While Mark Daigneault, his Thunder counterpart, had no choice but to praise his opponent: “It’s a really good team,” he said. “You have to give them credit not only for tonight, but also for their streak. They’ve had so many games like that that seemed unlikely. They play with great spirit and keep fighting. They keep playing.”
The Thunder had an 8-1 record on their home court
Their triumph against the Thunder has a special meaning, and not only because they got ahead in the first game despite their 24 turnovers and the great game of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (38+5+3+3 steals), but also for having conquered the Paycom Center in Oklahoma, the most impregnable court in the NBA this season, where the Thunder had recorded a balance of 35-6 in regular season, and 8-1 in these playoffs. The Pacers and the Nuggets are the only ones who have managed to profane their sanctuary in these playoffs.
We had control most of the time, but games last 48 minutes. And they teach you that lesson more than anyone else in this league, and the hard way
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder star, could not hide his frustration at the end of the game: “We had control of the game most of the time,” he said. “But games are 48 minutes long. And they teach you that lesson more than anyone else in this league, and the hard way.”
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