You remember the noise. That specific, ear-splitting Indiana roar that only happens when the Pacers are actually, finally, playing for a title at home. It had been twenty-five years. A quarter-century since Reggie Miller and Larry Bird (the coach version) stood on that same hardwood in the Finals. By the time Thunder Pacers Game 3 tipped off on June 11, 2025, the series was already weird.
The Thunder were supposed to steamroll. Honestly, everyone said it. They had 68 wins. They had the MVP in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. They had a defense that felt like it was playing with six guys on the court. But then the Pacers stole Game 1 in OKC, and suddenly, the "sweep" talk died a fast, painful death.
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The Night the Pacers Stunned the Champs
When the series shifted to Indianapolis for Game 3, the pressure was suffocating. Most analysts figured Shai would just go nuclear and quiet the crowd. Instead, something else happened. The Pacers defense—usually about as solid as a wet paper towel—suddenly found a pulse.
They won 116-107. It wasn't even a fluke.
Tyrese Haliburton had spent the first two games looking... kinda human? He hadn't cracked 20 points against OKC in forever. People were saying the Thunder had his number. Then Game 3 happened. Haliburton finished with 22 points, 11 assists, and 9 rebounds. He basically controlled the entire tempo, refusing to let the Thunder turn it into a track meet.
If you look back at the box score, the real story wasn't just the starters. It was the bench. Bennedict Mathurin was a flamethrower. He dropped 27 points on 9-of-12 shooting. Every time the Thunder tried to make a run, Mathurin would hit a contested three or get to the line. He played with a chip on his shoulder that seemed to bother Lu Dort, which is almost impossible to do.
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Why Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Looked Human
We don't see SGA get "flustered" often. Usually, he’s the coolest person in the arena. But in Thunder Pacers Game 3, Rick Carlisle threw a junk drawer of defenses at him.
Double teams at the logo. Blitzes. Zone looks that shifted into man-to-man. Shai still got his—he finished with 26—but he looked tired. He looked like he was working for every single bucket. Jalen Williams tried to pick up the slack with 26 of his own, including an 8-0 run to start the third quarter, but the help just wasn't there.
Chet Holmgren started hot, scoring 13 in the first quarter, but then he just sort of faded. The Pacers played physical. They bumped him off his spots. By the fourth quarter, the Thunder looked defeated for the first time in months. They weren't crashing the glass. They weren't getting back in transition. When Obi Toppin threw down that tip-slam in the final minutes to put Indiana up for good, the building nearly shook apart.
The Tactical Shift No One Noticed
Everyone talks about the scoring, but the real reason the Pacers took a 2-1 lead that night was the turnover battle. The Thunder usually feast on points off turnovers. In Game 3, T.J. McConnell was a absolute pest. He had five steals. Five. He was diving into the front row, poking balls away from Cason Wallace, and just being the general nuisance he's paid to be.
The Thunder bench, which had been so deep all year, only gave them 18 points. Alex Caruso had 8 of those. When your bench gets outplayed that badly by guys like T.J. and Mathurin, you’re going to lose on the road. Period.
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What This Game Actually Meant
Looking back now, as we sit in 2026 with the Thunder as defending champs, Game 3 feels like a fever dream. We know how it ended. OKC eventually figured it out, won the series in seven games, and Shai got his ring. But for one night in June, the Pacers looked like the better team. They exposed a few cracks in the "unbeatable" Thunder armor.
They showed that if you can limit OKC’s transition game and force them into a half-court grind, they can be beat. Even if you don't have a superstar who scores 50.
If you're looking to apply some of these "Game 3 lessons" to your own breakdown of the current 2025-26 season, pay attention to the following:
- Watch the Bench Scoring: The Thunder are 35-7 right now, but their losses usually happen when the second unit gets outscored by 15 or more.
- The Haliburton Blueprint: If you have a guard who can rebound and push, you can negate the Thunder's "small ball" advantage.
- Physicality Matters: Chet is better this year, but the Game 3 blueprint of bumping him early and often still works for teams with size like the Nuggets.
If you're heading to a game at Paycom soon or watching on FanDuel Sports Network, keep an eye on the defensive rotations in the second quarter. That's usually when the Thunder "break" teams, just like they did to Houston last night. But as the Pacers proved in that legendary Game 3, even the best teams can lose their composure when the road crowd gets loud enough.