The Indiana Pacers had an opportunity to do to the Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder what they did to the Knicks.
After pulling off a historic comeback victory in Recreation 1 of the NBA Finals, the Pacers entered Sunday evening’s Recreation 2 seeking to steal one other win on the street.
However Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had different concepts.
Gilgeous-Alexander, the NBA’s MVP, lived as much as that billing with 34 factors, 5 rebounds, eight assists and 4 steals in his Thunder’s 123-107 win at Paycom Middle in a big swing for Oklahoma Metropolis’s Finals odds.
“I’m being myself,” Gilgeous-Alexander stated afterward. “I don’t think I’ve tried to reinvent the wheel or step up to the plate with a different mindset. Just try to attack the game the right way. I think I’ve done a pretty good job of that so far.”
Gilgeous-Alexander shot 11-of-21 (52.4%) from the sector and made 11 of his 12 free throw makes an attempt.
He scored 19 factors within the second half because the Thunder stored the quick-strike Pacers at arm’s size, stopping the form of livid run that Indiana rode to its 111-110 victory in Recreation 1.
Gilgeous-Alexander scored 38 factors in Recreation 1, however he shot simply 14-of-30 (46.7%) and missed a jumper with 11 seconds remaining – proper earlier than Tyrese Haliburton drilled his game-winner on Indiana’s ensuing possession.
With 72 factors, Gilgeous-Alexander now holds the report for probably the most in a participant’s first two Finals video games, eclipsing the 71 that Allen Iverson scored for the Philadelphia 76ers in 2001.
“Unsurprising at this point. It’s just kind of what he does,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault stated of Gilgeous-Alexander. “He just continues to progress and improve and rise to every occasion that he puts himself in and that we put ourselves in.”
After main the NBA with 68 wins within the common season, the Thunder entered the Finals as heavy favorites over Indiana, the East’s No. 4 seed.
However Oklahoma Metropolis’s stunning loss in Recreation 1 — a sport during which it led by 15 factors within the fourth quarter — made Recreation 2 one thing of a must-win.
Groups to fall behind 0-2 within the Finals are 5-32 (13.5%) in these collection. No staff in NBA historical past has misplaced Video games 1 and a couple of of a Finals at dwelling and gone on to win the collection.
However the groups to separate the primary two Finals video games at their dwelling enviornment, as Oklahoma Metropolis did, have gained 27 of the earlier 39 collection, or 69.2%.
“Shai, you can mark down 34 points before they even get on the plane tomorrow for the next game,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle stated. “The guy’s going to score. We’ve got to find ways to make it as tough as possible on him.”
Added Pacers middle Myles Turner: “He’s MVP for a reason.”
The underdog Pacers gained a equally unbelievable Recreation 1 within the Jap Convention Finals, rallying again from a 17-point fourth-quarter deficit — and a nine-point deficit within the ultimate minute – to beat the Knicks in extra time at Madison Sq. Backyard.
Indiana beat the Knicks on the Backyard in Recreation 2, too, and went on to win the collection in six video games.
However the Thunder bounced again after their Recreation 1 meltdown, placing them in a significantly better place because the collection shifts to Indiana for Recreation 3 on Wednesday evening.
For that, they will thank Gilgeous-Alexander, who now has 11 video games with no less than 30 factors and 5 assists in these playoffs — tying him with Michael Jordan and LeBron James for probably the most such performances in a single postseason.
“I would trade the points for two Ws, for sure,” Gilgeous-Alexander stated. “But this is where our feet are. This is where we are. You can’t go back in the past. You can only make the future better, so that’s what I’m focused on.”
