OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Indiana guard Tyrese Haliburton grabbed at his lower right leg after an awkward fall in the first quarter, briefly leaving Game 5 of the NBA Finals for treatment.
He kept playing. He clearly wasn’t right.
To his credit, Haliburton gutted his way through 34 minutes — largely playing the role of a facilitating decoy in the second half, hardly ever looking to shoot. He finished with four points, all from the foul line, and the Pacers on Monday night to fall behind 3-2 in the series.
Haliburton was scoreless at halftime for the first time in 36 career playoff games. He scored his first points on a pair of free throws with 7:07 left in the third quarter.
And now, the challenge of winning an NBA title gets even tougher for the Pacers. They’re down, and their quarterback is ailing.
For the first time in these playoffs, the Pacers are trailing in a series. It didn’t happen against Milwaukee in Round 1, against Cleveland in Round 2 or against New York in the Eastern Conference finals.
But Oklahoma City’s win in Game 5 marked the first time Indiana — which had won 10 consecutive games immediately following a loss coming into Monday — has dropped two straight games since mid-March.
It also makes the math very simple now: The Pacers must win Thursday at home to force a Game 7, then must win in Oklahoma City on Sunday night if they are going to capture an NBA title for the first time.
Haliburton played 10:04 of the first quarter Monday, then left for the locker room area and Haliburton checked back into the game with 8:27 left in the first half.
The injury — whatever it is — has been an issue for much of the series. Haliburton was clearly limping after Game 2, then said before Game 3 that there wasn’t much to discuss.
“I’m fine. Really just a lower leg thing. I’ll leave it at that,” Haliburton said before Game 3. “I don’t think there’s anything more to elaborate.”
Pacers coach Rick Carlisle revealed earlier in the series that Haliburton has been experiencing some discomfort, though did not sound overly concerned. Haliburton has started all five games in the series.
Haliburton had seven rebounds and six assists Monday — but missed all six of his shots.
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