With ten minutes remaining in Game 4 of the NBA Finals, it looked like the Indiana Pacers were going to push the Oklahoma City Thunder to the brink of elimination by going up 3-1. Through three quarters, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s statline had fans on the internet conjuring theories regarding his health.
And yet, when the final buzzer sounded, the Thunder managed to escape Indianapolis with a seven-point victory, 111-104, a 14-point turnaround from the seven-point deficit they faced when the game appeared to be in the balance early in the fourth quarter (game log HERE).
OKC’s chances to win this series were riding on the fourth quarter. Teams that have feel behind 3-1 in the NBA Finals have lost 37 of the last 38 series. The only team to come back to win down 3-1 in that time frame is the 2016 Cleveland Cavaliers.
MVP For A Reason
Gilgeous-Alexander scored 15 of his 34 points in the fourth, pushing his average to 32.8 points per game during the NBA Finals. Gilgeous-Alexander scored 15 points in the final 4:38 and 11 in the final three minutes. In addition, Gilgeous-Alexander became the third point guard in NBA history to eclipse 600 points in a single playoff run, joining Stephen Curry and Luka Doncic.
Point guards with 600+ PTS in a playoff run:
Steph CurryLuka DoncicShai Gilgeous-Alexander pic.twitter.com/xzB1ErTk6Q
— Polymarket Hoops (@PolymarketHoops) June 14, 2025
“We finally strung together some stops,” Gilgeous-Alexander told ESPN postgame. “We weren’t able to get stops. We weren’t taking the ball out of the basket, and their pressure wasn’t the same because of that. We were able to get out and play our game. It always starts with stops for us. We’ve got to figure out a way to swim together for a 48-minute game, but we did enough to get a W tonight.
“We knew it (was a must-win) when we woke up this morning. 3-1 is a lot different than 2-2 going back home. We played with desperation to end the game, and that’s why we won. We’ve got to try and maintain the same desperation going into Game 5, Game 6, or whatever it may be.”
Stat Book
The Thunder also received a significant contribution from All-Star Jalen Williams, who scored 27 points on 8-of-18 shooting. Alex Caruso added 20 points in his 30 minutes off the bench, making seven of his nine field-goal attempts.
The Pacers led for most of the first quarter and nearly the entire second half, extending that lead to as many as 10 points late in the third. Tyrese Haliburton scored 18 points on 7-of-15 shooting (1-of-7 from 3), his third time being held below 20 points in four NBA Finals games. Pascal Siakam led the Pacers with 20 points on 6-of-15 shooting, while Obi Toppin added 17 points and seven rebounds off the bench on 7-of-12 shooting.
Oklahoma City made 34-80 attempts from the field as a team (42.5 percent), including 11-of-36 of its 3-point attempts. Indiana shot 37-of-78 from the field (47.4 percent) overall, better than the Thunder, but the Pacers’ 3-of-17 clip (17.6 percent) from 3-point range proved to be fatal.
