The Indiana Pacers (63-36 straight up, 48-50-1 against the spread) trailed Oklahoma City for 47 minutes and 59.7 seconds before Tyrese Haliburton gave his team its first lead on a 21-foot jumper from the right wing with 0.3 seconds remaining to lift his team to a 111-110 win in Game 1 of the NBA Finals.
Rick Carlisle’s club won outright as a 10-point road underdog, hooking up money-line supporters with a +330 payout. The 221 combined points dropped ‘under’ the 230-point total.
Indiana trailed by 15 points in the fourth quarter prior to ripping off a 32-16 run in the final 9:27. After a pair of free throws by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander gave OKC (80-20 SU, 62-34-4 ATS) a 108-99 lead with 2:52 left, Aaron Nesmith and Andrew Nembhard hit 3-pointers on back-to-back trips to make it a one-point game.
SGA countered with a bucket to put the Thunder ahead 110-105 with 1:27 remaining, but Nembhard responded with two free throws. Next, Pascal Siakam’s bucket made it 110-109 with 48.1 ticks left.
After OKC got a fresh shot clock off an offensive rebound, SGA ended up missing a mid-range jumper that Nesmith rebounded with eight seconds remaining. He threw to Haliburton, who advanced to his spot on the right wing off the dribble before elevating and burying the game-winning jumper.
Siakam led six Pacers in double figures with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Obi Toppin was spectacular in 25 minutes off the bench, making 5-of-8 treys while scoring 17 points and snagging five rebounds.
Myles Turner finished with 15 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots, while Haliburton contributed 14 points, 10 boards and six assists. Nembhard had 14 points, six assists and four rebounds.
SGA had 38 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals in defeat. Jalen Williams added 17 points and six assists without a turnover, but he made only 6-of-19 field-goal attempts. Lu Dort buried 5-of-9 shots from beyond the arc in a 15-point effort.
Indiana coughed up 24 turnovers compared to only six for the Thunder, but the Pacers dominated the glass with a 54-39 rebounding advantage. They also drained 18-of-39 launches from downtown (46%).
“That’s a really good team,” Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault said. “Credit them for not only tonight but their run. They’ve had so many games like that that have seemed improbable. And they just play with a great spirit and they keep coming. They keep playing.”
For Sunday’s Game 2, most books had OKC listed as an 11-point home favorite as of late Saturday morning. The total was 228 points on Friday, but it was up slightly to 228.5 early Saturday. The Pacers were +455 on the money line at Circa.
Most spots had OKC -8 for first-half bets with a total of 111.5. The Thunder were -4.5 for first-quarter wagers.
FanDuel has the updated series price as OKC -330, leaving Indiana as a +265 underdog. The book has SGA as -320 ‘chalk’ to win NBA Finals MVP honors, with Haliburton sporting the next-shortest odds at +360. Siakam has +1300 (or 13/1) odds.
Indiana improved to 7-1 both SU and ATS in its last eight road assignments. The Pacers are now 11-4 both SU and ATS in their last 15 games as underdogs.
ABC will provide television coverage of Sunday’s Game 2 at 8:00 p.m. Eastern