Tulsa -
For a moment in Game 2 of the NBA Finals, it may have seemed like time came to a standstill as Kevin Durant floated a last-second jumper over Miami Heat star LeBron James.
For Thunder fans it was a heart- stopping moment. And a local doctor says that's scientifically possible.
During an exciting, adrenaline fueled sporting event, our hearts can speed up and pause to re-set. That's according to Dr. Frank Gaffney with the Oklahoma Heart Institute.
Dr. Gaffney says our hearts will speed up following a surge of adrenaline, which generally happens while we watch a Thunder game.
In technical terms, Dr. Gaffney explains how the heart can skip occasionally with a premature ventricular contraction.
After a skipped beat, there is a compensatory pause, which is when the heart resets itself. After the pause, the next beat is big. So there is a skip, a pause and a big beat.
But Dr. Gaffney says don't worry too much about any negative health effects during those exciting moments leading up to the final buzzer - even if your team fails to score the winning basket. "Mostly what happens is a racing heart, and that's an OK thing," Dr. Gaffney said.
