Game Rewind: Pacers 121, Thunder 111

Tuesday, March 12 at 8:00 PM ET at Paycom Center

Going into the fourth quarter against the No. 1-ranked team in the Western Conference, Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlslie had a message for his team: play fearlessly.

The Pacers heeded those words in the Sooner State, fighting to the final buzzer in a hostile environment to pull off one of their most impressive wins of the season.

On Tuesday night, the Pacers (37-29) posted a 121-111 victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder (45-20) at Paycom Center to complete a two-game road trip. Going into Tuesday’s matchup, the Thunder had won nine straight at home, 16 of their last 17 games in OKC, and were 26-6 in their own arena.

The win moved the Pacers into sixth place in a tight Eastern Conference race. With 16 games remaining on the Pacers’ schedule, just 2.5 games separate the fourth through eighth seeds in the East.

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Indiana held OKC to a season-low 17 points in the first quarter and led by 12 at halftime before holding off multiple Thunder pushes in the final 24 minutes. While the Thunder threatened late, they never went up by more than a point in the game.

The Pacers led by one with 8:34 left in the game before a 9-1 run gave the Blue & Gold a small cushion. Down the final stretch, Tyrese Haliburton hit a pair of big shots and the Pacers made all six of their free-throw attempts to seal the game.

Indiana shot 53.9 percent from the field while holding the Thunder, which have the second-best shooting average in the league at 49.9 percent, to 43.4 percent shooting.

Six Pacers players scored in double figures, led by 25 points and four blocks from Myles Turner. After Turner, Pascal Siakam had 18 points and 11 rebounds for the Blue & Gold and Haliburton also achieved a double-double with 18 points and 12 assists.

“An important game for us and a great win in a tough, tough place against a tough team,” Pacers head coach Rick Carilsle said. “Our best players led us in this game: Ty, Pascal, and Myles. They set the tone early and everyone followed.”

MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander topped the Thunder with 30 points (12-for-27 shooting) and 10 rebounds, Lu Dort scored 18, and rookie big man Chet Holmgren logged 15 points and 13 rebounds for OKC.

The Thunder played without starting forward Jalen Williams, who is averaging 19.0 points per game, due to an ankle sprain. In his stead, Indiana native and Butler University legend Gordon Hayward was inserted into the first five for OKC.

In the first half, the Thunder shot just 35.6 percent from the field to Indiana’s 52.2 percent, as the visitors built a 58-46 lead. Turner had 15 points at the break to lead all scorers, while Gilgous-Alexander led the Thunder with 11.

The Pacers held OKC to its fewest points scored in a first quarter this season — which also matched its fewest scored by the Thunder in any quarter this season — as the Blue & Gold led 22-17 at the end of the first frame. In the opening 12 minutes, the Thunder shot just 26.9 percent from the field.

Indiana made its first five shots following the tip, with Turner connecting on a trio of baskets for seven points, while OKC started 1-for-6 from the field, as the Pacers led 11-2 three minutes into the game.

The Thunder responded with 3-pointers from Holmgren and Dort to make it a five-point game, but both teams scored seven points in the final 4:57 as the Pacers maintained the five-point lead.

Siakam scored seven of the Pacers’ first 10 points of the second quarter, capped by an and-one, to help the visitors to a 30-20 lead before two baskets by T.J. McConnell and a 3-pointer from Jarace Walker put the Blue & Gold ahead 37-27 with 8:04 left in the first half.

The Thunder got as close as seven points twice before the break, but in the final 3:24 of the half, the Pacers closed on a 14-8 scoring string, which featured 3-pointers from Andrew Nembhard and Haliburton, to stay ahead by 12.

OKC scored 41 points in the third quarter, but never led by more than a point in the frame. An 8-0 scoring streak by the Pacers to close the period helped the visitors stay ahead 94-87 going into the final 12 minutes

OKC turned two Pacers turnovers into baskets in the first 90 seconds of the third quarter, and added a pair of made free throws, to cut it to 60-54 and force an Indiana timeout.

The Thunder then got as close as three points twice before using a 15-7 run, punctuated by a 3-pointer from Isaiah Joe, gave OKC their first lead of the game at 85-84 with 2:05 left in the third quarter.

In the final 1:21 of the third, the Pacers finished on an 8-0 spree thanks to four free throws from Jalen Smith and layups by Ben Sheppard and McConnell.

OKC closed with a point at 99-98 early in the fourth quarter, but a 9-1 run by the Pacers from 8:11 to 5:04, which featured four different scorers and ended with a Nembhard three, gave the visitors a 108-99 lead with 5:04 left in the game.

After the Thunder cut it to six points, Turner got a bank shot to fall and Haliburton finished a layup and drilled a 3-pointer to make it 115-105 with 1:51 left. In the final seconds, Nembhard went 4-for-4 from the line and Siakam made both his free throw attempts to seal it.

The Thunder outrebounded the Pacers 50-43 but were outscored 72-52 in the paint and 23-3 in fastbreak points.

The Pacers kicks off a three-game home stand when they host the Chicago Bulls (31-34) tomorrow at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. 

“We just gotta keep plugging away,” Haliburton said. “It has to be a one game at a time mentality, that’s the biggest thing for us right now. Not focusing on what’s to come moving forward or the games we’ve lost in the past. Just taking it one day at a time, focusing on what’s in front of us. Everything else will take care of itself.”

Tyrese Haliburton achieved his 37th double-double of the season and Pascal Siakam logged his fifth.

Center Myles Turner had four blocks in the game for the Pacers. He has 14 blocks combined over the last three games.

Siakam has scored in double figures in all 24 games he’s played for the Pacers this season.

Indiana made just nine 3-pointers to OKC’s 14 treys. The Pacers are 6-14 when making fewer threes than their opponents this season.

The Thunder had 12 turnovers and the Pacers finished with nine.

The Pacers dished out 34 assists as a team.

All 10 players that took the floor for the Pacers recorded a made basket.

“Our defense has been really good the last four games. We have taken on a tone where we have the ability to make it tough. They missed some shots they normally make, probably, but our guys were working to make it hard on them. … The guys that played in the game played their hearts out.”  – Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle on the team’s defense

“All you can try to do is make it hard. The guy is going to be First Team All-NBA. He led the league in scoring this year and is (second) this year. He is a major reason why they are first in the West.” – Carlisle on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

“They are becoming young, veteran players. When you attach the word veteran on to a guy that’s a young player, you’re giving them a compliment. Both of those guys …. bring a consistent level of passion, effort and force to our team on both ends. Right now, we would be in big trouble without those guys.“ - Carlisle on Andrew Nembhard and Aaron Nesmith and taking on tough defensive assignments

“Myles is doing a good job of reading the situations and knowing the right shots to take at the right times. The fact he’s a legitimate three-level scorer is a problem for defenses. The thing that is really, really important is that he is putting rim pressure on the defense as much as possible and mixing in the short rolls and pops. … Tonight he made big shots. Once again, he was a major force at the rim defensively. He’s one of our leaders.” – Carlisle on Turner

“Games like tonight are the reason you make a trade for a guy like Pascal Siakam. He can create, has length defensively, he can effect shots at the rim defensively, and rebounds. His last-ditch effort to get the ball in the basket, he was the guy who got a piece of it, got the rebound, and that was pretty much the game. He has been in these situations. He has been in a lot of big games. He has been at a championship level. What he has brought to our team is very, very important.” – Carlisle on Siakam

“We’re playing with more effort and more energy. More intensity. We’re paying attention to detail and it’s paying off. I think it’s important for us to keep that going into the playoffs and finish these 16 left.” – Aaron Nesmith on recent wins

“I think that should be the motto for the rest of the season. Continue to play with intensity, effort, energy, and be fearless no matter who is in front of us.” – Nesmith on Carlisle’s fourth-quarter message of being fearless

“Now it’s time to sustain it. This time of year it’s important. I think the coaching staff did a good job of hammering in that message that defense is everything.” – Turner on the recent defensive play

“It has been a team effort. Everyone needs to be locked in to get stops out here.” – Nembhard on the defensive effort

“I think these two games were a good confidence boost.” – Nembhard on the two recent road wins

“I thought he was amazing today. He did a great job of being aggressive, especially early in the game. That opened everything for skips and everything else for everybody. When he rolls, it's not just about him – it opens things up for me and everyone else around him. I think he’s just been amazing the last two games.” –  Haliburton on Turner

Indiana held Oklahoma City to just 17 points on 26.9 percent shooting in the first quarter. The 17 points are the fewest for the Thunder in a first quarter this season and also matches the fewest points scored in any quarter by OKC.

The Pacers will be back at Gainbridge Fieldhouse to tip off a three-game homestand against DeMar DeRozan and the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday, March 13 at 7:30 PM ET. Find Tickets >>