Indiana Pacers drop Game 1 late vs New York Knicks and fall behind in series

The Knicks and Pacers faced off on Monday

May 6, 2024; New York, New York, USA; Indiana Pacers guard T.J. McConnell (9) looks to pass the ball against the New York Knicks. / Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

NEW YORK — The Indiana Pacers and New York Knicks began their 2024 Eastern Conference Semifinal series on Monday night in Madison Square Garden. Both teams won their first round series in six games and are hoping to make the Conference Finals for the first time in 10+ years.

Indiana did well against New York in the regular season, but both teams have shared that they don't believe that is relevant to this series. Between injuries and the changed atmosphere of the playoffs, a lot is different. Instead, pace, rebounding, and physicality will define this series. How the start of Game 1 looked would say a lot about how this best-of-seven set could go.

To get things started, the Knicks scored four-straight points. But the Pacers countered with five of their own, capped off by a bucket from Tyrese Haliburton from long range. Indiana looked unphased by the environment early as they generated good looks on most of their first possessions.

Their lead reached 8-4 before New York hit back and tied the game. If anything, the early parts of the game showed exactly what this series was going to look like. The Pacers high-powered offense can score in bunches, but the Knicks physical defense can disrupt them.

That 8-4 lead was met with an 8-0 run from the Knicks. Star guard Jalen Brunson was rolling early and had 10 of New York's first 12 points as the hosts took a four-point lead. It was an impressive start for the potential first-team All-NBA guard.

Indiana battled and cut the lead down to one a few possessions later, but a flurry of points from Josh Hart changed that quickly and led to a timeout from the Pacers. They were down six at the time and were struggling to score.

They were better for the final minutes of the frame. T.J. McConnell and the Pacers bench upped the tempo somewhat and helped Indiana get in gear, and they finished the period on a 7-3 run. It was 27-24 after the first quarter in favor of New York. Brunson and Hart had 19 points combined — McConnell led the blue and gold with six.

Ben Sheppard hit a three for the Pacers to start the second quarter, and that tied the game. Indiana was making a good percentage of the threes they generated to that point, and that was keeping them in the game. Isaiah Jackson scored soon after to give the visitors the lead.

The blue and gold held that edge for the next few minutes, though the score remained close. It was 33-32 when there was a stoppage with 8:05 to go until halftime — OG Anunoby had just knocked down a big three for New York.

Out of the break, Indiana scored four points in a row to expand their advantage. Their fight was impressive, and their defense was preventing any Knicks runs. New York had just 34 points in the first 18 minutes of action.

Indiana wasn't creating too much separation, though, and it was 40-38 with five minutes left in the second period. Andrew Nembhard picked up his third foul around that time, which was a significant development. He was a key defensive piece on Brunson.

Donte DiVincenzo was able to tie the game a few minutes later with a difficult layup. It was really tough for either team to create a scoring gap for much of the first half, so every burst was significant. Indiana answered with a quick six-point surge, though, and they led 52-46.

At the halftime buzzer, Isaiah Hartenstein hit a shot from beyond half court, and it was 55-49 in favor of the visitors. They found success on both ends of the court in the first half, and it was a game of short runs after two quarters. McConnell had 10 points to lead Indiana while Brunson had 18 for the Knicks.

To kick off the third frame, both teams were flying around offensively. Pascal Siakam and DiVincenzo each hit three-point shots, though the Knicks were able to break down the Pacers defense frequently. They cut the edge to 60-58 after a few minutes of second half play.

New York tied the game a few trips later, and that led to a timeout from the Pacers. They needed to regroup. Their defense wasn't as strong early in the second half and they needed to get back on track.

The score toggled between tied and within one score for the next few minutes. It was a tight battle, and halfway through the third period it was knotted up at 66. It felt like a massive playoff game with every basket being met with a dramatic reaction from the crowd.

After a basket from DiVincenzo, the Knicks took their first lead since early in the second quarter at 68-66. They battled hard to get back in the game and finally had an advantage. Their offense looked much better in the second half.

The Pacers brought in some of their second unit and were able to stay in the game, and they regained the lead with about three minutes to go in the quarter. In total, their run reached 10-0 as they battled back from a five-point deficit to reclaim the lead. It was 78-73 in favor of Indiana at the time.

Indiana held on to that five-point edge for the rest of the frame, which they capped off with a three-point shot from Myles Turner at the buzzer. That upped Turner's total to 22 points and pushed the scoreboard to 87-82 entering the final quarter.

To get that period going, the Pacers and Knicks traded baskets. But Indiana began to separate themselves after a few flimsy defensive possessions, and their lead reached nine. New York took a timeout. They needed to regroup and get Brunson back into the game.

He helped the Knicks trim the lead down to six in under one minute, and that was a part of a 5-0 New York run. Indiana took a timeout of their own at 94-90, they wanted to talk things over.

Coming out of that stoppage, the Knicks kept making a push. It was 96-95 with eight minutes to go in the game, and the crowd was electric. But Aaron Nesmith turned things around. He had a highlight dunk and followed it up with a transition layup to give the Pacers some momentum and take the wind out of the crowd. Indiana led by five at the time.

Yet just moments later, it was a one-point game. The Pacers were clinging to a small edge with five minutes to go, but they were finding ways to get the shots they wanted on most possessions. The close to this game was likely going to come down to their defense.

Brunson ripped apart that defense on the next few possessions, and Hart did on the glass. With 3:29 left in the game, it was tied at 109. Brunson was up to 36 points at the time — he was having a terrific game.

The Knicks' run reached 9-0 as they took a four-point lead in the final three minutes. They were fueled by their crowd, defense, and energy at the time. Indiana had a few chances to take a bigger lead, but they weren't successful, and now the hosts were punishing them for it.

Indiana was able to knot up the score at 113, though, meaning the last two minutes would decide the game. That's the ending this game deserved.

The Pacers hit first via a layup from Nebhard, but Brunson answered. The Knicks had the ball with the score tied at 115 with about 40 seconds to go when DiVincenzo hit a massive three-point shot to give New York a lead again. He knocked down several timely shots throughout the game.

The Pacers ended up with a chance to take the lead late. It was 118-117 and Indiana had the ball. But an illegal screen was called on Turner and no shot was attempted. New York now had the ball and a late lead.

They scored three points on their possession and led by four with 10.7 seconds remaining. Indiana turned it over on the ensuing possession, and that was game.

New York won Game 1 121-117 to take a 1-0 series lead. Brunson finished with 43 points while Turner had 23 and Siakam had 19.

Game 2 is on Wednesday.

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• Myles Turner finally reached the conference semifinals after a winding career with the Indiana Pacers. CLICK HERE.
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• Indiana Pacers crush Milwaukee Bucks in Game 6 to secure first-round series victory. CLICK HERE.
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