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The air inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse was electrical. The Indiana Pacers have been minutes away from taking full management of the NBA Finals, holding a stable lead deep into the fourth quarter of Sport 4. Followers stood in anticipation, sensing their crew may transfer inside one win of capturing the primary championship in franchise historical past. However when the ultimate horn sounded, it was heartbreak that crammed the constructing.

The Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder stormed again with a late surge to steal a 111-104 victory, leaving the collection tied at two video games apiece and the Pacers trying to find solutions.

After the sport, head coach Rick Carlisle addressed the collapse along with his standard honesty. He pointed to the realm that price Indiana the sport in these ultimate important minutes.

“We bought stagnant, their second photographs have been an enormous drawback,” Carlise mentioned post-game. “When you find yourself unable to rebound, it’s arduous to proceed with the tempo and tempo. However give them credit score, they saved attacking, attacking, and their protection was nice down the stretch.”

Carlisle’s frustration was simple to know. The Pacers had managed a lot of the competition. By the primary three quarters, Indiana’s offense hummed with the steadiness and tempo which have carried them all through the postseason. Tyrese Haliburton orchestrated the assault along with his standard poise, whereas Obi Toppin and Pascal Siakam supplied well timed scoring bursts. The Pacers entered the fourth quarter up seven and regarded poised to grab the second. However the ultimate twelve minutes changed into a nightmare.

The Thunder, going through monumental stress after dropping two straight, refused to fold. Led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma Metropolis launched a livid comeback that flipped the complete tone of the collection. The 2024-2025 MVP scored 15 of his game-high 35 factors within the ultimate body, delivering clutch basket after clutch basket as Indiana’s offense unraveled. With each massive shot from SGA, the Pacers grew tighter. Their ball motion slowed, their confidence wavered, and their shot choice grew extra determined.

Carlisle was fast to credit score Oklahoma Metropolis’s defensive effort down the stretch. The Thunder utilized full-court stress, fought by screens, and closed driving lanes that Indiana had exploited earlier within the sport. The Pacers missed open appears to be like that they had beforehand buried. Haliburton, who completed with 18 factors and seven assists, struggled from deep, lacking six three-point makes an attempt on the evening. Siakam added 20, whereas Toppin chipped in 17, however none may cease the late-game slide as Oklahoma Metropolis locked down defensively when it mattered most.

The collapse, although, was not nearly missed photographs. Carlisle’s reference to rebounding painted the total image. The Thunder owned the glass within the fourth quarter, outrebounding the Pacers, 12 to 4. The Pacers couldn’t management the boards when it mattered most, and the lack to safe defensive rebounds robbed them of the prospect to construct momentum or cease the bleeding.

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Jalen Williams performed a key function within the comeback as nicely, scoring 27 factors whereas contributing 7 rebounds. Alex Caruso delivered one in all his strongest video games of the postseason, ending with 20 factors and 5 steals off the bench. Their well timed performs helped Oklahoma Metropolis preserve tempo earlier than Gilgeous-Alexander delivered the knockout blows within the closing minutes.

The loss was painful not solely due to the squandered lead however due to what was at stake. The Pacers entered Sport 4 with a golden alternative to grab a 3-1 lead within the collection. Traditionally, groups that take that sort of benefit within the NBA Finals go on to win the championship almost each time. As an alternative, the Pacers now head to Oklahoma Metropolis with the collection tied and the home-court benefit swinging again to the Thunder.

The street forward will take a look at Indiana’s resilience. They need to regroup mentally and bodily earlier than Sport 5. Their power all through these playoffs has been their depth and composure, however now they face their largest problem but. Carlisle should discover a method to reignite his crew’s ball motion, safe the glass, and discover solutions for Oklahoma Metropolis’s defensive stress late in video games.

The rebounding battle will stay a key focus. When Indiana has managed the boards, their quick break and offensive tempo have flourished. After they have misplaced that battle, as they did within the fourth quarter of Sport 4, their total offense has stalled. Carlisle is aware of that if his crew can not win the rebounding margin, they’ll proceed to battle late in video games.

On the opposite facet, Oklahoma Metropolis carries a wave of confidence again to their residence ground. The Thunder have now confirmed they’ll win a Finals sport on the street and have proven the poise of a way more skilled crew. With Gilgeous-Alexander main the cost, Williams stepping up, Caruso offering vitality, and Chet Holmgren anchoring the protection, the Thunder all of the sudden appear like a crew able to seize management.

Sport 5 looms because the pivotal second of the collection. Indiana can take again management and remind the Thunder that that is nonetheless their combat to win,  or Oklahoma Metropolis can trip the momentum of this comeback victory and place the Pacers on the brink. The stakes couldn’t be greater, and each possession, rebound, and defensive cease will carry even better weight.

Carlisle’s postgame phrases captured the brutal honesty of playoff basketball. His crew let one slip away. However because the collection shifts, the Pacers nonetheless have the prospect to reply. Their potential to study from this collapse might in the end outline whether or not their season ends in triumph or heartbreak.