Benedict Matlin led the Indiana Pacers past the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 3 of the NBA Finals, with Bill Simmons making surprising predictions before the game.
The Indiana Pacers defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 3 of the NBA Finals 116-107, leading the heavy favorites 2-1.
In the first game of the series at Gainbridge Field House, Benedict Maturin scored 27 points from the bench, leading all the scorers. Mathurin missed the playoffs last year with a shoulder injury, and was awful this year, but he provided double-digit bench points in the ninth inning and made a solid defense.
After Game 1, where he only played 15 minutes, podcaster and analyst Bill Simmons made bold predictions with a flash of excellence.
Located 202 points from the postseason bench, Matlin was the best second-unit scorer in the NBA playoffs. In Game 1 of the Finals, he only shot 20% off the floor and made the only 3-pointer, but Simmons saw the flash of light ahead.
“I thought he looked chaotic and comfortable,” Simmons said after Game 1. Maturin scored just five points, but he did an excellent defense.
“Are you going to hear from him in this series?” Simmons asked. “In one of these games, we have a game where Mathurin scored 27 points in 22 minutes.”
After all, Maturin played just 22 minutes, scoring 27 points, overtaking Jalen Williams, Shy Gilgauss Alexander and all of his teammates.
In front of the crowd at home, Maturin led the bench unit, while TJ McConnell and Obitoppin provided timely and excellent performances to give Pacer the series lead.
After seeing his prediction go viral, Simmons admitted his decisive call, but admitted that he didn’t get everything right.
“This was one of my better predictions. (Of course, I also chose OKC with 5 before the series).
At any time, the Pacers could lead in scoring for either Halliburton, Pascalciacam, Miles Turner, or bench players, and in Game 3, Matlin stepped up.
He was pushing the pace, forcing sales and drawing contact.
“Maturin jumped in there and quickly got offensive and got the ball into the basket,” praised Rick Carlisle after the game. “This is a team that everyone needs to be prepared.”
While Mathurin stole the show, the Pacers are Haliburton’s team, but the All-NBA point guard quickly admitted that the team was feeding from the bench unit.
“He thought it was incredible,” Halliburton added. “He also did a great job in the transition, forced problems and thought it went downhill. He made big plays and then big plays.”
The Pacers’ bench outscored the Thunder, 49-18, McConnell and Toppin’s total by 18 points. The Pacers are looking to take a 3-1 series lead on Friday, so they hope Maturin will follow up with the other games.