As the Indiana Pacers navigate the NBA Finals, holding a slender 2-1 advantage over the Oklahoma City Thunder heading into a pivotal Game 4, a veneer of equanimity belies the underlying tensions, with Pacers' floor general Tyrese Haliburton circumspectly acknowledging the protracted nature of the series; their Game 3 triumph, a decisive 116-107 victory catalyzed by superlative performances from Bennedict Mathurin and T.J. McConnell – evinced by a commanding 49-18 disparity in bench scoring – notwithstanding, the Thunder demonstrated early dominance in both the first and third stanzas, prompting Pacers' tactician Rick Carlisle to exhort his squad to cultivate a "killer edge" lest they squander their advantage, particularly given the potentially galvanizing effect a Thunder victory, leveling the series at 2-2 and affording them home-court advantage in two of the final three contests, would undoubtedly engender, all while the Pacers grapple with the uncertainty surrounding Myles Turner, whose Game 3 contributions proved instrumental, as he contends with an illness, though he is currently projected to participate in the forthcoming encounter.