Can the Thunder produce another Game 7 blowout after getting blown out themselves in Game 6?
Oklahoma City opened up as an 8.5-point favorite at BetMGM ahead of Sunday’s deciding NBA Finals game. The Indiana Pacers emphatically forced Game 7 on Thursday night with a 108-91 win that wasn’t as close as the final score indicated. Indiana went on a monster run to take a 22-point lead at halftime and extended the lead to 30 before the start of the fourth quarter.
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The Pacers did all that after starting 0-of-8 from the field. The Thunder had a quick 10-2 lead and trailed 34-33 during the second quarter. The score at halftime was 64-42.
Five Pacers scored in double figures as Obi Toppin had 20 points off the bench and was 4-of-7 from behind the 3-point line.
This is Indiana’s first seven-game series of the playoffs and the second for the Thunder. Oklahoma City went to seven games in the second round with Denver and the Finals have looked a lot like that Denver series.
The Nuggets swiped Game 1 in OKC after the Thunder were in control for much of the game before Oklahoma City had a big bounce back in Game 2. Denver then won Game 3 before the Thunder won Game 4 and Game 5 and lost convincingly on the road in Game 6.
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Sound familiar? The Pacers got their first lead of the game in Game 1 on Tyrese Haliburton’s game-winning shot with 0.3 seconds left. The Thunder won Game 2 before losing Game 3. Then the Thunder seized control late in Game 4 to tie the series and won Game 5 ahead of last night’s big Pacers win.
The Thunder have been favored in all seven games so far this series after they were big favorites to win in five games. OKC has covered the spread in all three of its wins and its two victories at home have both been by double-digits.
If you think Indiana is going to score the series win, avoiding the spread and going straight to the moneyline is the play. The Pacers are +290 to win Game 7 while the Thunder are -375.
