This time, the Oklahoma City Thunder made sure to hold on to a big fourth-quarter lead.

League MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander recorded 34 points and eight assists as the Thunder evened the NBA Finals at one game apiece with Sunday's 123-107 Game 2 victory over the Indiana Pacers.

The Western Conference champions bounced back after squandering a 15-point lead with under 10 minutes left in Thursday's Game 1, with the Pacers roaring back late to claim a stunning 101-100 road win on Tyrese Haliburton's go-ahead jumper with 0.3 seconds on the clock.

There would be no such comeback in Sunday's rematch, as the Thunder maintained a double-digit cushion the rest of the way after building a 38-27 advantage just over four minutes into the second quarter.

Oklahoma City also received 19 points from Jalen Williams and big contributions off the bench from Alex Caruso and Aaron Wiggins, who combined to go 9 of 16 from 3-point range.

Caruso finished with 20 points and Wiggins had 18 on 5-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc.

Game 1 hero Haliburton ended with 17 points, but 12 of them came in the fourth quarter with the Thunder ahead comfortably at the time.

Another of Indiana's key players struggled as well, with Pascal Siakam managing 15 points but going just 3 of 11 from the field.

Myles Turner added 16 points for the Pacers, who will host the series' next two matchups beginning with Wednesday's Game 3.

After closing out Thursday's opener with a flourish, the Pacers came out cold in Game 2. Indiana shot just 33.3 per cent from the field in the first quarter and the Thunder ended the period on a 9-0 run to take a 26-20 edge into the second.

The Pacers couldn't get shots to fall the rest of the first half either, with Oklahoma City breaking things open by embarking on an 19-2 spurt in the second quarter. Wiggins hit a pair of 3-pointers during the flurry, while Gilgeous-Alexander had seven points in the run and staked the Thunder to a commanding 52-29 lead with a steal and layup with 4:48 to go before half-time.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the @okcthunder has scored 72 points through the first two games of the #NBAFinals presented by @YouTubeTV.

That is the most points ever by a player in his first two career NBA Finals games.

The previous high was 71 by Allen Iverson (2001). pic.twitter.com/3qHRM0kuck

— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) June 9, 2025

Oklahoma City went into the break ahead 59-41 behind Gilgeous-Alexander's 15 points and 11 from Chet Holmgren, then continued to keep Indiana at a distance throughout the second half.

The Pacers were unable to get their deficit below 13 points in the final two quarters, in large part due to the Thunder's proficiency at the foul line. Oklahoma City made 23 of 25 free throw attempts in the second half, with Gilgeous-Alexander going 9 for 9 and Williams 5 for 6.