Game 4: Gilgeous-Alexander goes
wild in the 4th, Thunder rally to top Pacers 111-104 and tie Finals
[June 14, 2025]
By TIM REYNOLDS
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Game on the line, season quite possibly on the
line, the Oklahoma City Thunder had only one place to turn.
They went to the MVP.
And Shai Gilgeous-Alexander delivered, scoring 15 of his 35 points
in the final 4:38, capping Oklahoma City's rally from a 10-point,
second-half deficit and sealing a 111-104 win over the Indiana
Pacers 111-104 on Friday night to tie the NBA Finals at two games
apiece.
“He definitely showed who he is tonight,” Thunder coach Mark
Daigneault said.
It was all SGA for OKC down the stretch. The Thunder closed the game
on a 16-7 run; he had all but one of those points.
“We played with desperation to end the game,” Gilgeous-Alexander
said, “and that’s why we won.”
Jalen Williams added 27, Alex Caruso had 20 and Chet Holmgren
finished with 14 points and 15 rebounds for the Thunder. They did it
the hard way — with a season-low three 3-pointers, and no assists
from Gilgeous-Alexander for the first time all season.
Pascal Siakam scored 20 for Indiana, which got 18 from Tyrese
Haliburton and 17 from Obi Toppin.
Game 5 of the series — now essentially a best-of-three — is at
Oklahoma City on Monday night, with the Thunder now having reclaimed
home-court advantage.
“This kind of a challenge is going to have extreme highs and extreme
lows,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. “This is a low right now and
we're going to have to bounce back from it.”
The Thunder basically saved their realistic chance at winning the
title. Teams with a 3-1 series lead in the NBA Finals have gone on
to win the championship 37 times in 38 past chances. The Pacers
looked well on their way to being the 39th team with such an edge,
before Gilgeous-Alexander saved the day.
“We knew it when we woke up this morning; 3-1 is a lot different
than 2-2 going back home,” Gilgeous-Alexander said.
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Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner is pressured by Oklahoma City
Thunder guard Cason Wallace (22) during the first half of Game 4 of
the NBA Finals basketball series, Friday, June 13, 2025, in
Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
The Pacers came out flying, scoring 20 points in
the first 4:59 — only the second time all season the Thunder gave up
so many so quickly. They led by as many as nine early, but were
unable to pull away.
And things got chippy for the first time in the series: Toppin was
called for a Flagrant 1 on Caruso midway through the second quarter,
then Toppin was the recipient of a Flagrant 1 from Lu Dort just
before the half. The Pacers closed on a 15-6 run, taking a 60-57
lead into the break.
Toppin’s baseline dunk late in the third put Indiana up 86-76, its
first double-digit lead of the series coming late in the 15th
quarter of the series. Back came OKC: A 13-3 run tied the game early
in the fourth at 89, the first of a handful of those down the
stretch.
Tied at 91. Tied at 95. Tied at 97. And, finally, the lead: Gilgeous-Alexander’s
step-back with 2:23 left put the Thunder up 104-103, their first
lead of the second half.
They kept it the rest of the way.
“We wanted to win," Siakam said. “I thought we played well enough
for some stretches ... but unfortunately, it didn't happen.”
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