New York Knicks vs. Indiana Pacers, Eastern Conference Finals: LIVE Game 1 Log
Much has changed over the last quarter-century but the New York Knicks and Indiana Pacers are once again playing an NBA Finals bid.
The lasting playoff rivals are set to face off in the Eastern Conference finale's best-of-seven set, with the winner getting a long-sought bid to the famed championship round. The ninth postseason get-together between Manhattan and Indianapolis gets underway with the opening stanzas at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night.
New York is Indiana's most common postseason opponent and the Pacers have won five of the prior eight showings. The two sides have split two previous showdowns in the conference final stage, with the Knicks prevailing in 1999 before the Pacers took revenge a year later.
Yet another playoff tilt with the Pacers gives the Knicks an immediate shot at revenge for what transpired last year: Indiana spoiled the most successful Knicks season in over a decade with a seven-game triumph in the conference semifinal stanza, finishing things off with a 130-109 win over an injury-riddled Manhattan group at MSG.
The Knicks already earned a quantum of revenge in the regular season, taking two of three meetings from Indianapolis. That includes the most recent get-together on Feb. 11, a 128-115 Knick win at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
0.0—Indiana inbounds and the comeback is complete. Heartbreak in Manhattan.
0.2—Brunson and Towns miss equalizing threes. Scramble for the ball, possession runed to Indiana. Timeout for review.
15.3—Toppin invades for another monster dunk. Timeout Knicks, their last (138-135 IND)
18.9—Mathurin taps the ball out of bounds, but Indiana claims it might've been off Brunson. Timeout for a challenge. The challenge is successful, Indiana ball
26.1—Nembhard duplicates the feat and the Pacers get the lead. Timeout Knicks. (136-135 IND)
35.2—Brunson penetration leads to another double and changed lead (135-134 NYK)
54.0—Indiana finally misses a three but Toppin slams back a Haliburton miss (134-133 IND)
1:09—Brunson goes back to the foul line after Haliburton's third foul. He sinks both, giving him 41 and the Knicks the lead (133-132 NYK)
1:22—Haliburton's drive just sinks in. Back in the lead (132-131 IND)
1:09—Brunson goes back to the foul line after Haliburton's third foul. He sinks both, giving him 41 and the Knicks the lead (133-132 NYK)
1:22—Haliburton's drive just sinks in. Back in the lead (132-131 IND)
1:44—Nesmith picks up his fifth. Sends Brunson to the line for two and two are sunk. (131-130 NYK)
2:12—Nembhard attacks Brunson and his five fouls and gives Indiana its first lead since the second period (130-129 IND)
2:24—Jump ball following a Brunson and Nembhard tie-up. Indiana gets it back.
2:44—Following a close Turner swat that could've been goaltending, Nembhard hits another three. It's reviewed to confirm. (129-128 NYK)
3:11—Hart finds Anunoby underneath for a dunk. (129-125 NYK)
3:43—Towns' stepback two provides the first points of the extra session (127-125 NYK)
2:24—Jump ball following a Brunson and Nembhard tie-up. Indiana gets it back.
2:44—Following a close Turner swat that could've been goaltending, Nembhard hits another three. It's reviewed to confirm. (129-128 NYK)
3:11—Hart finds Anunoby underneath for a dunk. (129-125 NYK)
3:43—Towns' stepback two provides the first points of the extra session (127-125 NYK)
3:50—Hart's three misses in the corner but the ball goes off Indiana. Knicks ball.
0.0—Haliburton launches a deep two that bounces in before time expires. His foot is ruled to be on the line, but overtime is coming up next. (125-125)
7.3—The ball gets loose, but the Knicks recover well enough to get Anunoby to the foul line. Anunoby hits one. (125-123 NYK)
12.4—Anunoby fouls Nesmith just before he gets a shot off. Nesmith hits two from the line (124-123 NYK)
14.3—After a near-scare on the inbound, Towns is fouled and goes to the line. He hits one of two. Timeout Pacers. (124-121 NYK)
22.1—Nesmith hits yet another three, narrowing the gap to two. Timeout Knicks. (123-121 NYK)
29.2—Siakam is called for a foul but the Pacers are challenging. It's successful, and the Pacers get the ball back.
34.1—Yet another Nesmith three keeps the game alive. Timeout Knicks (123-118 NYK)
41.1—Towns' physical layup keeps the Pacers at bay (123-115 NYK)
51.0—Nesmith sinks another three (121-115 NYK)
58.8—A Brunson drive pushes the lead back to nine (121-112 NYK)
1:20—A Hart foul sends Siakam to the line. He hits one of two (119-112 NYK)
2:02—Three threes from the Pacers, albeit one countered by Brunson, slice the gap to a single digit (119-111 NYK)
3:44—Timeout Knicks in between Brunson free throws. He hits one of two (116-102 NYK)
4:04—Towns reaches 30 by scoring on a fourth opportunity. Bryant is down after some contact with Towns but says in the game. (115-101 NYK)
5:00—Following Nembhard's fourth foul Brunson re-enters the game. (111-98 NYK)
6:26—Towns hits another three, his fourth of the night after making just three during the whole Boston series. New largest lead for New York. (111-94 NYK)
7:18—Siakam finally stems the Pacer bleeding with an and-one off Towns' fourth. He misses the freebie (108-94 NYK)
7:22—The run continues with Anunoby penetration and his dunk puts the Knicks up 16, all without Brunson. Timeout Pacers. (108-92 NYK)
8:01—The Knicks' Brunson-less run extends to 12 in a row after a Tows stepback off an inbound (106-92 NYK)
8:25—McBride rejects Siakam's dunk attempt and Towns get to the line for three more on a Nembhard foul. Towns hits all three (104-92 NYK)
8:44—Nembhard's fourth puts McBride at the line for three. He hits two (101-92 NYK)
9:20—Following back-to-back tallies for Anunoby—a stepback three and a physical two—Indiana calls timeout with the New York lead re-established at seven (99-92 NYK)
10:05—Brunson is called for his fifth foul, a shooting charge on McConnell . Brunson sits for Hart, Towns also re-enters. McConnell hits one. (94-92 NYK)
10:49—Following two more from Mathurin, Brunson's drive puts him over the triple decade mark (94-91 NYK)
11:27—Brunson immediately gets on the board with a double (92-89 NYK)
11:41—Mathurin, gaining an offensive board off a Siakam miss, gets two freebies thanks to a McBride foul, his first. He hits both (90-89 NYK)
12:00—Brunson re-enters the game with his four fouls
6.9—McConnell drives to end the third's scoring on a yellow note.
26.1—Nesmith is charged with his third foul on a reach-in following a miss. Anunoby hits one of two. Delon Wright comes in for a defensive stop. (90-85 NYK)
44.2—Towns goes to the line after Sikam's first foul He hits two (89-85 NYK)
50.1—Robinson steps out for Anunoby after another Siakam tally (87-85 NYK)
1:27—Following a McBride double, Towns is charged with his third for knocking down Toppin (87-83 NYK)
2:41—Robinson's first foul sends Bryant to the line. He hits two. Nesmith comes in for Haliburton (85-83 NYK)
3:16—Following a Haliburton airball from deep, the Pacers call time. Payne enters for Brunson
3:40—Robinson's fourth offensive board leads to a two-point Brunson stepback (85-81 NYK)
4:11—Robinson keeps Haliburton at the top of the key but he nonetheless hits a three (83-81 NYK)
4:30—Brunson immediately responds with a successful and-one, first foul against Mathurn (83-78 NYK)
4:44—Brunson is charged with his fourth foul, a shooting one on Haliburton, who sinks two. Brunson stays in (80-78 NYK)
5:26—Toppin is emphatically rejected by Anunoby but turns it into a reverse two (80-76 NYK)
5:54—Turner's second foul sends Towns to the line, where he hits one of two. (80-74 NYK)
7:06—Off the timeout, Bridges banks one in over Siakam (77-72 NYK)
7:25—Indiana gets a quick four, the latter when Turner passes on a three to find an open Siakam under the rim. Timeout Knicks. (75-72 NYK)
8:01—Following a Siakam two, a driving Brunson dishes one to Towns, who lays it in. (75-68 NYK)
8:42—Brunson drives further and banks one in off the glass after a Turner double. Brunson has 20. (73-66 NYK)
9:16—Following some handfighting between Nesmith and Brunson, the latter is charged with an offensive foul. Knicks challenge. The call stands, and Brunson has his third foul. He stays in the game. (71-64 NYK)
10:47—Anunoby's pump fake leads to a dunk and the Knicks biggest lead of the night (71-62 NYK)
11:32—Following a Hart offensive rebound, Bridges goes to the line for two on Haliburton's first foul. He misses both.
8.7—Brunson ends his half on two successful free throws and a floater to create a seven-point halftime lead for the Knicks. (69-62 NYK)
58.6—Haliburton's three gives him 14 for the game and 10 in the period (65-62 NYK)
1:09—Towns goes to the line for two after Nembhard's third foul and hits two (65-59 NYK)
1:56—The Knicks instant respond with a Brunson three, this coming through a three-point play on Nesmith's second foul.
2:08—Following a Haliburton double, Towns is charged with a foul, his second. Haliburton instantly responds with a three (60-59 NYK)
2:46—The Knicks go back up six after Brunson hits two following a Nembhard foul
3:40—Following a Hart double, Brunson is charged with his second foul. Nembhard makes one of two (58-52 NYK)
4:40—Following a Nesmith three, Miles McBride soothes the blow with two sinks from the line (56-51 NYK)
5:17—Payne picks up his third foul and send Aaron Nesmith to the line. Brunson comes back in as Nesmith hits both ensuing free throws (54-48 NYK)
5:52—After Toppin flubs a wide open dunk, another Towns three, this from the corner, leads to another Pacer timeout and the Knicks' largest lead (54-46 NYK)
6:39—Payne hits another three to build another two-possession lead (51-46 NYK)
6:55—Anunoby flubs a fastbreak and then picks up his second foul that sends Turner to the line. He hits one. (48-46 NYK)
7:58—Another offensive rebound for the Knicks becomes a Bridges putback. Timeout Pacers. (48-45 NYK)
8:20—A physical drive from Towns gives the Knicks the lead back and puts him in double figures (46-45 NYK)
8:49—Payne hits a three, his first since the opening game of the first round. (45-44 IND)
9:33—The Knicks turn it over after the timeout and then Mathurin hits two from the line after an Anunoby foul. Towns comes in for Robinson. (45-41 IND)
9:57—Knicks call timeout after a Siakam steal becomes a quick two (43-41 IND)
10:12—Bridges follows up another two (now in double figures with 10) with a block of McConnell. (41-41)
10:53—OG Anunoby gives the Knicks a brief lead before McConnell puts the visitors back ahead (41-39 IND)
11:21—A Siakam offensive rebound (Indiana's first) leads to a successful and-one for Bennedict Mathurin. The Cameron Payne foul gives Indy the lead back (37-36 IND)
1.2—Following a Robinson steal from McConnell, Hart goes to the line on a Bryant foul. He hits one of two to close scoring.
30.0—Brunson instantly gets it back in similar fashion (35-34 NYK)
42.1—McConnell immediately gives the Pacers the lead back on a drive (34-33 IND)
49.0—Brunson takes a hard foul from Toppin and gets up a little reeling in the neck. He nonetheless hits one to give the Knicks the lead (33-32 NYK)
1:09—Brunson and Robinson units for an emphatic alley-oop to tie the game (32-32)
1:22—Following another Bridges stepback, Brunson picks up his first foul on McConnell, who makes one of two (32-30 IND)
2:05—Toppin scores for the Pacers but Hart immediately responds with a three on the other end (31-28 IND)
2:34—Following a TJ McConnell foul and another Robinson offensive rebound, Miles McBride sinks a three (29-25 IND)
2:57—Following a missed three from former Knick Obi Toppin, timeout on the floor.
3:39—The Pacers turn the Knicks' first turnover, an errant Bridges pass, into a Thomas Bryant two (29-22 IND)
4:01—Following a Turner three and Mikal Bridges drive, Robinson grabs another offensive rebound. Nembhard commits a non-shooting foul. (27-22 IND)
5:04—Mitchell Robinson enters and immediately grabs an offensive rebound that leads to free throws, Turner on the foul. Robinson misses both.
5:17—Siakam draws the first shooting foul, Josh Hart the guilty party. He hits both. (24-20 IND)
6:18—Nembhard finally misses one from Indiana after a Brunson double. Brunson immediately responds with another two on the other end (20-18 IND)
6:48—Off the timeout, Turner dries and slams over Towns. Indiana is 9-of-9. (20-14 IND)
6:59—The Knicks stifle Indy momentum when Josh Hart steals a Haliburton pass and Towns sinks another three. Timeout Indiana (18-14 IND)
7:10—After another exchange of doubles, Towns is charged with the first foul against Aaron Nesmith. It's the first whistle of the game. Indiana is 8-of-8. (18-11 IND)
8:19—Indiana has begun 7-of-7 from the floor, and all starters have scored at least once after Pascal Siakam scores on the fastbreak feed from Tyrese Haliburton (16-9 IND)
9:40—Haliburton's double gives the Pacers the lead back (9-7 IND)
10:02—After an exchange of doubles, Karl-Anthony Towns hits his first three to tie the game after hitting just three against Boston (7-7)
11:25—A speedy toss from Josh Hart to Mikal Brides leads to a double that puts the Knicks on the board (3-2 IND)
11:46—Andrew Nembhard opens scoring with a three (3-0 IND)
12:00—Myles Turner wins the tip from Karl-Anthony Towns and the Eastern Conference Finals are underway
OG Anunoby, Mikal Bridges, Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, Karl-Anthony Towns
Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam, Myles Turner
None
Isaiah Jackson (Out, Torn Achilles Tendon)
Mitchell Ervin, Ben Taylor, Zach Zarba (Alternate: Brian Forte)
Line: NYK -4.5
O/U: 223.5
