The Oklahoma City Thunder put one hand on the Larry O’Brien Trophy on Monday night, beating the Indiana Pacers 120–109 in Game 5 of the NBA Finals to take a 3–2 lead in the series. It’s the first time in the postseason that the Pacers have trailed in a series, and their first time losing back-to-back games dating all the way back to March.
It was a rocky first half for the Pacers, with Tyrese Haliburton, who has been dealing with a leg injury, held scoreless in the first half for the first time in his playoff career. The Thunder carried an impressive 59–45 lead into halftime, and appeared to be in total control.
But like they have time and time again this postseason, the Pacers fought back, putting together several runs in the third quarter with the help of surprise hero T.J. McConnell to cut into the Thunder lead. While they would close the gap to as few as two points in the fourth quarter, Oklahoma City never let Indiana tie the game up, and quickly responded with a run of their own to put the game out of reach.
A JALEN WILLIAMS TAKEOVER IN GAME 5 🚨
— NBA (@NBA) June 17, 2025
He's got a playoff career-high 37 points!! pic.twitter.com/3Wlx9twLIg
Leading the way for the Thunder in Game 5 was Jalen Williams—the Robin to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s Batman throughout the regular season. Williams led all scorers with 40 points, with SGA following right behind him with 31 points on the night.
With the win, the Thunder are now just one win away from their first championship in this iteration of franchise history. The Seattle Supersonics won the 1979 NBA championship.
Game 6 is set for Thursday night in Indiana, with the Pacers needing to defend home court to force a decisive Game 7 on Sunday.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Thunder Hold Off Pacers’ Comeback Effort to Move One Win Away From Championship.
