INDIANAPOLIS — Remember how lopsided the Knicks-Pacers second-round playoff series was last season?
For a quick refresher, the Knicks won the first two games of the series at Madison Square Garden, then the Pacers won Games 3 and 4 at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse, including a 121-89 rout of the Knicks in Game 4. The final four games of the second-round series were blowout decisions, and no team won on the opponent’s home floor until the Knicks—who ran out of healthy bodies—ran out of steam in an elimination Game 7 at MSG.
The trend has continued, marking an odd relationship between the Knicks and Pacers that continued in the second matchup this season between these two teams. The Knicks blew the Pacers out by 25 in the second game of the season, then faced them again on Sunday, this time on their own home floor, and this time with the Pacers short three key contributors: Aaron Nesmith, Andrew Nembhard and Obi Toppin, the former Knicks first-round pick traded to the Pacers for a pair of second-round picks.
It didn’t matter. Despite the Pacers missing their two-best perimeter defenders, they out-gunned the Knicks in a 132-121 loss on Sunday, marking New York’s third loss in its last four games and its fifth straight loss at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse dating back to their 140-126 loss on Dec. 30, 2023.
Maybe something is in the air — or the water — in the Hoosier State. Or maybe the game can be whittled down to the two biggest discrepancies between the two teams on Sunday: the three ball and depth.
Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin got the start in place of Nesmith and scored a game-high 38 points, and stretch five Myles Turner gave the Knicks a taste of their own medicine, hitting five 3s on eight attempts for 26 points. All-Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton scored a season-high 35 points to go with 14 assists, and the Knicks — without backup guard Cameron Payne (hamstring), big man Mitchell Robinson (ankle surgery recovery) and backup forward Precious Achiuwa (hamstring strain) — couldn’t match the Pacers’ firepower to win their second game in a row.
Jalen Brunson scored a team-high 33 points on 11-of-17 shooting from the field, and Karl-Anthony Towns added 30 points on 11-of-19 shooting, but the Knicks shot just 7-of-25 from three-point range, paling in comparison to the 21-of-46 night the Pacers had from downtown: seven from Mathurin, five from Turner, four from Halliburton and two apiece from Jarace Walker and Pascal Siakam.
Pre-game, head coach Tom Thibodeau discussed the three-point frenzy taking the NBA by storm.
“You also have to understand the value of shots. I think that’s important. Everyone tends to say all 3s, and it’s not just all 3s. It’s as many layups as you can get,” he said. “That’s what you’re prioritizing. And then get to the line, and then create open 3s, and then sometimes the mid-range is the shot that’s there. But you want to have a balance. You have to understand the math of the game in terms of if someone’s making 20 3s, and you’re making 10, it’s gonna be pretty hard to win that game.”
The Knicks turned the ball over 13 times to just six giveaways by the Pacers.
OG Anunoby scored 25 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the field, but the Knicks got just eight points from Mikal Bridges and nine points from the bench: seven from Miles McBride and two from Jericho Sims.
The Knicks fell back below-.500 with Sunday’s loss but have a chance to get back even in Philadelphia against a 76ers team without both MVP center Joel Embiid and All-Star guard Tyrese Maxey.
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