The Oklahoma City Thunder didn’t have their best night, but they found enough grit and timely plays to claw back from a sluggish start and outlast the Indiana Pacers, 111-104, in a pivotal Game 4 of the NBA Finals.
With the win, the Thunder tie the series at two games apiece and reclaim home-court advantage heading back to Oklahoma City for Game 5.
For three quarters, it looked like Indiana might pull away. Oklahoma City couldn’t find their rhythm, particularly from beyond the arc, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was unusually quiet. But the fourth quarter flipped the script. Gilgeous-Alexander erupted with 15 points in the final frame, including a series of clutch plays that turned a seven-point deficit into a season-defining win.
His turnaround jumper with just over two minutes left gave Oklahoma City its first lead of the second half at 104-103. The Thunder never looked back.
Gilgeous-Alexander ended with 35 points on 12-for-24 shooting and hit all 10 of his free-throw attempts. He didn’t record a single assist—an anomaly for the All-NBA guard—but he made up for it with timely shot-making and composed leadership in the game’s biggest moments.
The Thunder as a whole struggled with ball movement and outside shooting, recording just 11 assists and connecting on only 3 of 16 shots from three-point range. But what they lacked in precision, they made up for with physicality and resilience. Oklahoma City outrebounded Indiana 43 to 33 and converted 34 of 38 free throws, a key margin in a tightly contested game.
Jalen Williams added 27 points and seven rebounds, while rookie Chet Holmgren controlled the paint with 14 points and 15 boards. Off the bench, Alex Caruso turned in another huge Finals performance, scoring 20 points on 7-for-9 shooting while adding five steals. His defense and hustle provided much-needed energy for the Thunder during their offensive droughts.
The Pacers, meanwhile, looked to be in command after building an 87-80 lead through three quarters. Pascal Siakam came out hot with 10 first-quarter points and finished with 20 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and five steals. Obi Toppin chipped in 17 off the bench, and Tyrese Haliburton added 18 points and seven assists. But Haliburton’s five turnovers proved costly, especially during the Thunder’s final push.
Perhaps the biggest disappointment for Indiana was the late-game collapse by Bennedict Mathurin, who had been a spark plug in Game 3. In the final minute, Mathurin missed three crucial free throws and committed two away-from-play fouls, both of which gifted the Thunder extra points and possessions. His miscues, combined with Gilgeous-Alexander’s clutch performance, sealed Indiana’s fate.
Oklahoma City shot just 18.8 percent from three, yet found other ways to win—outworking the Pacers on the glass, capitalizing on turnovers, and controlling the tempo late. The Pacers shot better from deep but left points at the line, converting only 75.8 percent of their free throws compared to the Thunder’s near-perfect showing.
Now the series heads back to Oklahoma City, where the Thunder will look to ride the momentum of a massive comeback win. For the Pacers, Game 4 may be remembered as a missed opportunity—a game where they had control, only to let it slip away in the final minutes.
What was nearly a commanding 3-1 series lead is now a best-of-three battle for the title.