OKC Thunder outpaced the Indiana Pacers: 3 takeaways

A 2018-19 NBA record 24-0 scoring run helped the OKC Thunder outpace the Indiana Pacers and get back on track with a crucial home win.

The Indiana Pacers broke the ice as the first team to visit Chesapeake Energy Arena in a five game home stretch for the OKC Thunder. This was the second match-up between the two teams, the first being a last second 108-106 win for Indiana two weeks ago.

Oklahoma City entered the game with a 43-31 record which positioned them in seventh place in the Western Conference standings. The five game home stretch could not have come at a better time for the Thunder as they plummeted on a downward spiral with a 6-11 record since the All-Star break.

Conversely, Indiana came into the game on a high after beating up on the Denver Nuggets. The Pacers entered the contest with a 45-29 record that situated them in fourth place in the Eastern Conference standings. Indiana has been entrenched in that fourth place spot for several weeks and already secured a playoff berth.

Oklahoma City, needing to get back on track and scrape away all the wins they can as the regular season winds down, came out of the gates hot with abundant energy. Unfortunately, not much amounted from that as the first half wore on without anything of particular interest with the Pacers leading 54-45.

Thankfully, the second half proved to be a brand new game as the Thunder found their stride and put on a magnificent display that included an NBA 2018-19 season record 24-0 run. That effort came six minutes into the third frame, and Oklahoma City never looked back as they went on to win 107-99.

Though only for one quarter, that performance was enough to earn OKC the victory and lift their spirits into a more positive trajectory in preparation for a tough couple of weeks that lie ahead. With that, let’s get to the three key takeaways.