moranelkarifnews : Pacers steal Game 1 of the NBA Finals with another Tyrese Haliburton clutch game-winner

OKLAHOMA CITY — Tyrese Haliburton and the Pacers have done it again.

Indiana now has five 15+ point comebacks these playoffs, it has won every Game 1 this postseason, and when it needed a clutch shot Haliburton has stepped up all playoffs long.

That didn’t change in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on a night the Thunder were the better team for 45 minutes — leading by nine with 2:30 remaining — but when it came to executing in the clutch, it was once again the Pacers. Haliburton silenced Loud City and sent Pacers fans into a frenzy.

Indiana stole Game 1 of the NBA Finals on the road, 111-110. The Pacers hold a 1-0 series lead, with Game 2 set for Sunday in Oklahoma City.

That gives the Thunder a couple of days to stew on the one they feel they let get away — the Thunder had 17 more scoring opportunities (and took 16 more shots) but couldn’t knock enough of them down.

For the Pacers — who embraced their underdog status — this was just more of what they do.

Obi Toppin may have best summed up the night for Indiana: He had a brutal first half, turning the ball over three times, missing some defensive rotations, but he settled down in the second half and ended up leading the team with 17 points. It was a balanced Pacers’ attack with six players in double figures, three of them also racking up double-digit rebounds.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander looked like an MVP for most of the night, scoring 38 points, but the Pacers generally did a good job of staying home on other players and letting him cook. Those other players shot 36.8% on the night.

For much of the night, it felt like the Thunder were going to blow this game open, but they never did — and Indiana never quit.

In the first half, Oklahoma City’s defense was the embodiment of the famous Mike Tyson quote, “Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.” The Thunder’s swarming defense forced 19 first-half Pacers turnovers, 11 of them live-ball, and were lucky only to be down a dozen, 57-46 at the half.

However, the Thunder turned those 19 turnovers into just nine points — too often looking for a knockout 3-pointer rather than simply getting to the rim — and that, combined with OKC shooting 5-of-20 from the midrange in the first 24 minutes, kept the Pacers within striking distance.

The Pacers lost the possession game in the first half. Add in the six offensive rebounds the Thunder had in the first 24 minutes and Oklahoma City had 18 more scoring opportunities. They just didn’t take advantage of them.

Oklahoma City opened the game with the first twist of the series, going small and starting defensive guard Cason Wallace instead of big man Isaiah Hartenstein. It didn’t take long before the Pacers started to attack that with off-ball screens forcing Wallace to switch onto the bigger Pascal Siakam. That sparked a 10-3 run, and in what would be a theme of the night, the Thunder pulled away and the Pacers roared back.