Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scores 15 of his 35 points in the final 4:38, capping OKC's rally from a 10-point deficit in Game 4 of the NBA Finals.
INDIANAPOLIS – No one is alleging that the twists and turns, the ups and downs of the 2025 NBA Finals are scripted. But there was an eerie sense late Friday night that we had seen this one before.
It was Game 4, with Oklahoma City down 2-1 in the best-of-seven series and on the verge of losing yet again on the road. With 12 minutes left, the Thunder trailed by six points, only to rally and outscore the home team by double digits, thanks largely to tightening its defensive grip like a vice in that final quarter.
That was then, by the way: A month and two rounds ago when OKC found itself late in Game 4 in its Western Conference semifinals series against Denver. The momentum of that comeback helped the Thunder win Game 5 back at home and eventually prevail in seven games.
This time, it happened in the Finals, with most of the circumstances the same. This time, the Thunder trailed the Indiana Pacers 87-80 through three. And this time, instead of dominating the fourth quarter 29-18, the Thunder put the defensive squeeze on Indiana for a 31-17 edge.
That was plenty, lifting Oklahoma City to a 111-104 victory, evening the series, and grabbing back home-court advantage as the Finals shift back to their arena for Game 5 (Monday, 8:30 ET, ABC).
The moment
Indiana almost had gone up by 12 moments deep in the third, only to have Obi Toppin, its hero off the bench Friday, miss two free throws at 86-76. Pascal Siakam missed one as well, enabling OKC to get within seven points by quarter’s end.
Still, the Pacers appeared to be in control, looked more energetic and were heading toward the part of the game they had owned. Through the first three games, they had outscored OKC 100-73 in the fourth quarter.
This one, however, bore no resemblance to the ones that preceded it.
A slew of missed 3-pointers and a botched entry pass looking inside for Toppin fueled a 9-2 spurt by the Thunder that tied it at 89-89. Indiana began to look tentative as OKC pushed its defensive out farther onto the floor. Possession after possession, the Pacers seemed stuck, forced to work in the sliver of court real estate from the halfcourt to the 3-point arc.
Whether it was defensive specialist Lu Dort, versatile big Chet Holmgren, feisty Alex Caruso, star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or others, the Thunder made every decision difficult for the home team.
“Really good execution,” OKC coach Mark Daigneault said. “Made them earn everything. Just [our] competitive will.”
The impact
OKC’s aggressive work on ball handlers and pestering even the simplest passes narrowed down Indiana’s offense to free throws generated under the glass, Thunder defenders reaching or boxing out too physically. That wasn’t bad – the Pacers led again 101-97 with 3:52 left – but it soon wasn’t nearly enough.
What changed? Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, held to (for him) a quiet 20 points through three, got it going with 15 in the fourth. He scored seven OKC’s next three trips downcourt to flip the lead, 104-103 at 2:21.
And the Pacers were done. Out of a timeout, they passed the ball around the perimeter hot-potato style, as if none of them wanted to get it and go. Sure enough, Dort got in between Myles Turner’s handoff to Tyrese Haliburton to thwart a shaky possession at the worst time for Indiana.
“Lu in particular set an unbelievable tone defensively in the fourth quarter,” Daigneault said. “That was kind of contagious. … Got great performances from a lot of guys. I thought he really kind of swung the game.”
It’s possible the Pacers’ frustrations trying to score hurt their defensive work down the stretch. It’s undeniable that it hurt their offensive ambitions. Indiana managed just one more point the rest of the way. That means it got outscored 14-3 over the final 3:52.
The Pacers’ other numbers were just as ugly. Through three quarters it hade shot nearly 47% overall and 39.3% on 3s. In the fourth, 5-for-18 (27.8%) and 0-for-8 from the arc. It got dominated 12-4 on the boards, too, the Thunder grabbing as many offensive rebounds as the Pacers grabbed, period, in that period.
And after scoring 100 points on 70 possessions (1.43 per) in the fourth quarter of Games 1-3, Indiana managed only 17 points on 21 possessions (0.81) Friday.
What they’re saying
“We really hung in there in the third. … They really had the wind to their back. We had some deflating plays. It was an easy game to give up on. We kept it in striking distance, 8, 10, then able to close it in the fourth.”
– Thunder coach Mark Daigneault
“I thought they went more to the small – the four-guard lineup. That got us stagnant there.”
– Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton
“I have to do a better job of keeping pace in the game. … We have to do a better job of, when we do get stops, getting out running. A lot of times in that 4th we were fouling too much, taking the ball out, trying to run something, versus just random basketball.”
– Haliburton
“Their second shots were a big problem. When you’re unable to rebound, it’s hard to continue to play with pace and tempo. … give them credit. They kept attacking, kept attacking, and their defense was great down the stretch.”
– Pacers coach Rick Carlisle
What’s next
When you’re a hammer, every problem looks like a nail. Indiana thrives so much on offense, its players focused on things like making more shots down the stretch. Carlisle bemoaned the rebounding gap. But this one was decided a lot by grit, OKC realizing there was a game to be grabbed with less than four minutes left. Never mind their chilly 3-point shooting (3-for-16) or meager assists total (11). The Thunder wanted no part of being on the wrong side of a 3-1 series, either.
Now they aren’t. It’s best-of-three, with the Pacers tasked with winning at least one more time at hostile Paycom Center (Game 5: Monday, 8:30 ET, ABC). The Thunder, who won an NBA-high 68 games in the regular season, have 14 in the playoffs with two more in their sights. They say No. 84 would come with a trophy.
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Steve Aschburner has written about the NBA since 1980. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on X.
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