Jalen Williams: Pacers capitalized on our 'unforced errors'

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams pointed to his team's self-inflicted miscues as a pivotal factor in Wednesday's 116-107 Game 3 defeat to the Indiana Pacers.

"We just had a lot of unforced errors," Williams told reporters postgame, including ESPN's Tim MacMahon. "They capitalized on them because they're a good team."

Oklahoma City led the NBA during both the regular season and the playoffs in points off turnovers, but the Thunder got a taste of their own medicine in Game 3.

Indiana tallied 21 points off 17 turnovers, including back-to-back buckets to even up the contest at 95 with 8:33 remaining.

The Pacers' defensive energy was evident throughout the fourth quarter. Reserve guard T.J. McConnell recorded two of his game-high five steals in the final frame.

Indiana's full-court pressure prevented Oklahoma City from getting into any offensive flow during the fourth quarter, as they were limited to just 18 points. The Thunder trio of Williams, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Chet Holmgren combined for only 11 points on 4-of-13 shooting.

"To win games of this magnitude, at this level, we have to be better," Holmgren said. "We need to close games, close quarters, close possessions. It doesn't just come down to the end of the game. We got to figure out how to put ourselves in a better position for the whole 48 minutes."

Indiana can take a commanding 3-1 series lead with a Game 4 victory on Friday.