Coming into Game 3, the Thunder were still the team to beat — MVP in the lineup, 68 wins in the bag, and no back-to-back losses since early February. But on Wednesday night in Indy, it was the Pacers who looked like the group with all the answers. They earned every bit of a 116-107 win that puts them up 2-1 in the series and throws a serious wrench in the narrative that OKC’s youth movement was steamrolling toward a title.

Sure, the bench went off (we’ll get to that), but this one was bigger than any stat. It felt like a real turning point. For a fanbase that’s waited 25 years to see another Finals game in their own building, this wasn’t just a win — it was a full-on “we’re not just happy to be here” moment. And right now, Indiana's got more than just hope. They’ve got control.

From Thunder Boom to Indy Crescendo

Thunder Punch First… Again

Oklahoma City came out on fire, just like in games 1 and 2. Chet Holmgren wasted no time making his presence felt, dropping 13 points in the opening frame while looking as comfortable as ever inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Lu Dort added to the early surge, hitting three threes and helping stretch the Pacers' defense thin.

Indiana, on the other hand, looked tight. Seven turnovers in the first nine minutes kind of summed it up. Whether it was nerves, rust, or just a little too much juice from the crowd, they weren’t settled in at all. And the most surprising part was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander hadn’t even joined the party yet. He didn’t score in the quarter and was 0-for-3 from the field, and OKC still had the lead.

The Thunder’s strong start had them up 32-24 after the first. It was the kind of quarter where Oklahoma City did exactly what they needed to — jump on a team that looked a little too hyped up and still finding its rhythm.

Enter the Bench Mob, Exit the Narrative

Rick Carlisle turned to his bench early in the second quarter, and that’s when the entire game flipped. Bennedict Mathurin came in and instantly changed the tempo, pouring in 14 points in just six minutes. He hit everything — tough finishes, clean threes, and even drew contact for and-ones. It felt like every time the Pacers needed a bucket or a burst, Mathurin had the answer.

Right behind him was TJ McConnell, who brought the kind of energy that doesn’t always show up in the box score but was impossible to miss. He was diving for loose balls, getting in passing lanes, and pushing the pace in transition. His five assists and three steals in the half kept the Thunder on their heels.

By halftime, the Pacers’ bench had outscored OKC’s 30-11, and that gap only grew. The Pacers as a whole dropped 40 in the second quarter alone — without committing a single turnover. It was everything you want out of a home Finals quarter: efficient offense, total control of the pace, and defensive pressure that forced OKC to play faster than they wanted.

When the halftime buzzer sounded, Indiana had turned an early 10-point deficit into a 64-60 lead, and the Fieldhouse crowd let them hear it.

Stars Trade Haymakers

You don’t win 68 games without knowing how to respond to a run, and Oklahoma City did just that in the third. Jalen Williams came out aggressive, knocking down back-to-back buckets that helped swing the momentum back in the Thunder’s direction. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who had been relatively quiet in the first half, started finding space to operate. He got downhill more often, using his length and pace to get into the paint and force the defense to collapse.

Tyrese Haliburton drilled a deep three that looked like it was pulled from the logo, only for Shai to come right back with a smooth floater off the glass. That was the theme of the entire third quarter. By the time the dust settled, there had already been 14 ties in the game — more than we saw across all five games of last year’s Finals. It was tense, high-level basketball where every possession mattered.

Just before the horn, Jalen Williams rose up and buried a three to put OKC up 89-84 heading into the fourth. But even with that momentum play, the Pacers didn’t look rattled.

Pacers Keep Showing Up in the Clutch

When the game was still tight heading into the fourth, it almost felt inevitable. That’s been the story for the Pacers all postseason — close late, and they find a way.

Bennedict Mathurin got them rolling with a corner three to tie it at 98, continuing the heater he’d been on since the second quarter. The moment never looked too big for him.

Then came Obi Toppin, who flew in for a putback dunk that rattled the rim and shook the building. He’s not always the guy you draw something up for, but when he makes plays like that, it feels like the whole team feeds off it. It was the kind of effort play that doesn’t just give you points — it gives you momentum.

Then came T.J. McConnell, who was everywhere, turning defense into offense and doing all the little stuff that swings games without needing a play drawn up for him.

But it wasn’t sealed until Myles Turner got back-to-back blocks on Holmgren — one on the perimeter, the other at the rim. That stretch summed up Indiana’s mentality throughout the fourth quarter: stay poised, do your job, and don’t give an inch.

The Numbers That Mattered

If you needed a visual to understand how Indiana adjusted to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, just look at his shot chart.

In the first half, SGA lived at the rim. All five of his makes came from right around the basket — nothing farther than a half-step outside the charge circle dropped. He was relentless in getting downhill, picking his spots, and finishing through contact or around help. That inside attack was what kept OKC in rhythm early, even when the rest of their offense stalled out for stretches.

But in the second half, that interior presence vanished. He didn’t take a single shot at the rim. Everything shifted to midrange jumpers and tougher looks beyond the paint. He went just 4-for-9 in the second half, and while those aren’t awful numbers, the shift in shot location was telling. Shai was clearly pushed out of his comfort zone, forced to work for every look from areas the Pacers were much more comfortable defending.

That kind of shift doesn’t happen on accident. Indiana tightened the screws at halftime — more bodies at the nail, better help rotations, and a concerted effort to cut off straight-line drives. They made life harder on one of the game’s smoothest scorers, and it showed.

This Series Just Got Real

If you’re the Thunder, you lean on the things that got you here. Clean up the turnovers, get more out of your bench, and trust that your young core can respond like they have all season. This is a group that rarely drops two in a row and owns the NBA’s best road record for a reason.

But this isn’t a random Wednesday in February. This is the NBA Finals. On the road. Down 2-1. And if you don’t get Game 4, you're suddenly staring down a 3-1 hole that no team wants any part of. That’s a different kind of pressure than anything Oklahoma City’s dealt with all year. They’ve been the hunters — now they’re being hunted.

For Indiana, it’s about staying grounded. They’ve done this all playoffs — answered every challenge, closed every tight game, and now they’ve got a chance to seize full control in front of a home crowd that’s waited two decades for a moment like this.

All stats courtesy of NBA.com.