With 0.3 seconds left, Tyrese Haliburton knocked down a nervy 21-footer that gave the Indiana Pacers their first and only lead of the night, stealing Game 1 from the Oklahoma City Thunder, 111-110, to open the 2025 NBA Finals. A 14–2 run closed the night, and Haliburton’s dagger was the exclamation point.
In his Finals debut, Haliburton posted 14 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists, but it was the timing that made him legendary. Indiana had trailed by 15 in the fourth before storming back with their fifth double-digit comeback win of the playoffs, a record in the play-by-play era.
Even with 25 turnovers, yeah, 25, the Pacers pulled off what no team had done since the 1977 Portland Trail Blazers: win an NBA Finals game with that many mistakes. Was history made? Absolutely.
Haliburton’s Finals Heroics Draw Instant Reaction from Arike Ogunbowale
Dallas Wings guard Arike Ogunbowale was among the first to react to Haliburton’s buzzer-beater. She took to X, formerly Twitter, to post a one-word summary of the moment: “Craziest.” She followed it with another post, writing, “Haliburton is on the craziest run I’ve ever seen omg.”
haliburton is on the craziest run I’ve ever seen omg
— Arike Ogunbowale (@Arike_O) June 6, 2025
The praise came just minutes after Haliburton’s latest clutch moment sealed Indiana’s Game 1 upset. Haliburton already had a highlight reel going this postseason: a dagger over the Cleveland Cavaliers with barely a second to spare in the semis, plus that wild buzzer-beater against the New York Knicks to force overtime in the conference finals.
Thursday night’s shot was arguably his biggest yet, coming on the road, in his Finals debut, with the game on the line.
Tyrese Haliburton Speaks on Pacers’ Mindset After Another Comeback Win
The Pacers were down 94-79 with just under 9:30 left in the fourth quarter. With 2:38 to play, they still trailed 108-99. Then, Haliburton led the charge.
Indiana outscored Oklahoma City 12-2 in the final stretch, with Haliburton knocking down the go-ahead jumper just before the buzzer. After the game, Haliburton spoke with ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt about the team’s mentality during the comeback.
“Just stay at it. You know, we’re a resilient group,” Haliburton said. “We just keep saying that to you guys, you know? You guys keep asking us, I keep giving you the same answer. We’re a resilient group, and we don’t give up ‘til the clock hits zero, you know? So we do a great job of just staying in the moment. You know, trying to get it from 15 to 10, 10 to 5, 5 to zero, you know? We just walk teams down, and really proud of this group.”
With the win, Indiana takes a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series and flips momentum squarely in its favor heading into Game 2.