Pacers try to take advantage of 2nd chance to eliminate Knicks and advance to NBA Finals
Associated Press
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indiana Pacers will try to take advantage of a second chance to eliminate the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference finals at home on Saturday night.
Indiana is looking to make the second NBA Finals appearance in franchise history and the first in 25 years. The Pacers lead the series 3-2 after losing Game 5 to the Knicks 111-94 on Thursday.
Tip is scheduled for 8 p.m. Eastern and will be televised on TNT, and a Pacers win would mark the final chapter in the network's long history of broadcasting NBA games. TNT will not carry games next season.
A Knicks win would send the series back to New York on Monday night for Game 7.
The series winner will open the the finals on Thursday at Oklahoma City.
Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton is 11-2 all-time in playoff home games. He had a historic stat line in his most recent contest at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, finishing with 32 points, 15 assists, 12 rebounds, four steals and no turnovers Tuesday.
The two-time All-Star became the first player to record at least 30 points, 15 assists, 10 rebounds and have no turnovers in a playoff game since turnovers were first tracked in 1977-78. And he did it in front of his father, John, who had an eight-game ban lifted following his on-court confrontation with Milwaukee star Giannis Antetokounmpo when his son's last-second layup eliminated the Bucks in their first-round series.
New York lost the first two games of this series at home but has rebounded to win two of the last three since inserting Mitchell Robinson into the starting lineup. Coach Tom Thibodeau expanded New York's rotation and All-Star center Karl-Anthony Towns started driving to the basket more frequently.
Anthony-Towns has averaged 24 points and 13.3 rebounds in the last three games while All-Star guard Jalen Brunson has averaged 28.7 points over that span. Brunson also has topped the 30-point mark in each of the last two to extend the Knicks' postseason record for most 30-point games in franchise history with 21.
New York is trying to become the 14th team in league history to rally from a 3-1 deficit to win a series. It hasn't reached the finals since 1999 and hasn't won a title since 1973.
The road team won each of the first three games in this series while the home team has prevailed in each of the last two.
___
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba
recommended
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Los Angeles Times
31 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
UCLA baseball defeats UC Irvine to advance to NCAA super regionals
UCLA baseball is one step closer to earning a trip to Omaha. The Bruins continued to roll in every facet of the game in the Los Angeles Regional final, scoring early and trusting its bullpen to defeat UC Irvine 8-5 on Sunday night. The Bruins advance to the super regionals of the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2019 and will host the Texas San Antonio at Jackie Robinson Stadium this week. UTSA defeated Texas 7-4 in the Austin Regional final, taking down the national second-seed Longhorns to advance to its first-ever super regional. If UCLA beats UTSA, it'll advance to the College World Series in Omaha, Neb., for the first time since 2013. UCLA's offense was just as ready to explode — like they did against Fresno State and Arizona State — against a depleted UC Irvine pitching staff (with high-leverage bullpen arms Ricky Ojeda and David Utagawa unavailable after pitching earlier Sunday). Rallying for six hits across the first two innings, the Bruins put together three runs thanks to RBI singles from Roman Martin and Cashel Dugger, and a sacrifice fly from Roch Cholowsky. UCLA first baseman Mulivai Levu helped place the game in blowout territory — an 8-0 lead — when he connected for a three-run home run in a five-run fourth inning. Much like UCLA had done all weekend, the lineup kept on churning. Freshman right-hander Wylan Moss set the tone for UCLA's combined pitching effort. Moss, who entered the contest with a 2.25 earned-run average and an All-Big-Ten Freshman Team recognition, was as good as advertised to stymie UC Irvine, who came off an 11-run offensive showing earlier in the day. The six-foot-three righty struck out the top of the Anteaters lineup — Will Bermudez, Chase Call and Jacob McCombs — swinging on change ups. Moss, who had yet to pitch in the NCAA Tournament, was lying in wait for a game of magnitude. He pitched 3 ⅓ innings, giving up two runs and two hits, while walking three and striking out four. From there, a five-pitcher bullpen effort kept Irvine at bay, pitching 5 ⅔ innings of five-run ball the rest of the way to wrap up regional action in Westwood. Things got more complicated for UCLA in the sixth, when freshman right-hander Cal Randall gave up a solo home run to UC Irvine designated hitter Alonso Reyes to make it a three-run game, but right-hander Jack O'Connor entered to extinguish the threat — and set down UC Irvine outfielder Chase Call on a fielder's choice to close out the inning. It wasn't easy sailing for the Bruins in the late innings. Graduate student right-hander August Souza bailed UCLA out of a bases-loaded jam by freezing the potential go-ahead run, Blake Penso, on a full-count, 87-mph fastball in the seventh. When the Bruins needed it the most, Souza struck out two in a scoreless eighth, putting metaphorical champagne on ice in Westwood. Freshman right-hander Easton Hawk tossed a perfect ninth, striking out James Castagnola to end it, prompting the Bruins to run onto the field in celebration. UCLA owned the Los Angeles Regional title. Postseason baseball will remain in Jackie Robinson Stadium for at least one more weekend. Levu led all Bruins with three RBIs, while Cholowsky went one for three with two RBIs from sacrifice flies.
New York Times
35 minutes ago
- New York Times
Pacers beat Knicks for Eastern Conference title, will face Thunder in 2025 NBA Finals: Live reaction and analysis
The Indiana Pacers, led by 31 points from Pascal Siakam, beat the New York Knicks in Game 6 to close out the Eastern Conference finals at home and advance to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2000. The Knicks kept the game close until the third quarter, when the Pacers' pressure on both ends began to swing the game. Indiana forced 18 New York turnovers, resulting in 34 points, and scored 25 points in transition. Tyrese Haliburton was quiet until the fourth quarter but scored 11 points late, finishing with 21 points and 14 assists. Indiana's role players stepped up as well. Thomas Bryant scored 11 points on 3-5 shooting, including 2-2 from 3, in 12 minutes while Obi Toppin scored 18 points off the bench, shooting 7-11 from the field. The Pacers did an excellent job on Jalen Brunson, holding him to 19 points on 8-18 shooting with five turnovers. Karl-Anthony Towns, battling through a knee injury, finished with 22 points and 14 rebounds. OG Anunoby helped New York hang around, scoring 24 points on 10-18 shooting. Game 1 of the NBA Finals is set for Thursday, June 5th at 8:30 p.m. ET in Oklahoma City. GO FURTHER Pacers head to NBA Finals for first time since 2000, besting Knicks in Game 6
New York Times
35 minutes ago
- New York Times
FINAL: Pacers return to NBA Finals!
Indiana advances to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2000, beating New York 125-108 in Game 6 Imagn Images The Indiana Pacers, led by 31 points from Pascal Siakam, beat the New York Knicks in Game 6 to close out the Eastern Conference finals at home and advance to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2000. The Knicks kept the game close until the third quarter, when the Pacers' pressure on both ends began to swing the game. Indiana forced 18 New York turnovers, resulting in 34 points, and scored 25 points in transition. Tyrese Haliburton was quiet until the fourth quarter but scored 11 points late, finishing with 21 points and 14 assists. Indiana's role players stepped up as well. Thomas Bryant scored 11 points on 3-5 shooting, including 2-2 from 3, in 12 minutes while Obi Toppin scored 18 points off the bench, shooting 7-11 from the field. The Pacers did an excellent job on Jalen Brunson, holding him to 19 points on 8-18 shooting with five turnovers. Karl-Anthony Towns, battling through a knee injury, finished with 22 points and 14 rebounds. OG Anunoby helped New York hang around, scoring 24 points on 10-18 shooting. Game 1 of the NBA Finals is set for Thursday, June 5th at 8:30 p.m. ET in Oklahoma City. GO FURTHER Pacers head to NBA Finals for first time since 2000, besting Knicks in Game 6 GO FURTHER 2025 NBA Finals preview: Thunder-Pacers key matchups, X-factors and more Connections: Sports Edition Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Getty Images FINAL - Pacers 125, Knicks 108 For the first time since 2000, the Pacers are back in the NBA Finals! They'll face the Oklahoma City Thunder as each franchise looks for its first NBA championship* Game 1 is Thursday, and we'll have you covered fully until then with all the biggest storylines from the series here at The Athletic . (*The then-Seattle SuperSonics won in 1979, which is not acknowledged by the Thunder.) Q4 0:47 - Pacers 125, Knicks 105 Now Rick Carlisle removes his starters to a standing ovation from Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Getty Images Q4 0:47 - Pacers 125, Knicks 105 One last great Kevin Harlan call on TNT after that Tyrese Haliburton 3: "OHHHH! Haliburton has gone mad!" Getty Images Q4 1:22 - Pacers 122, Knicks 102 I'm just gonna put this out there now while I still can: Pascal Siakam should win Eastern Conference Finals MVP. Getty Images Knicks watching that block by Obi Toppin on OG Anunoby like, "what the heck? you never did that with us" Getty Images Q4 1:52 - Pacers 119, Knicks 99 Tom Thibodeau removes his starters. This game, and this series, is about to be over. Q4 3:40 - Pacers 115, Knicks 97 Obi Toppin thunders down the lane for a dunk against his former team. Tyrese Haliburton is up to 13 assists. Gainbridge Fieldhouse is rocking. The Indiana Pacers are on the verge of the NBA Finals. Andrew Nembhard putting up an all-time playoff line, especially given the assignment on Jalen Brunson: 14 points, 8 assists, ZERO turnovers, six steals, and has made 6-of-12 field goals and 2-of-5 3s. He played (Nemb)hard until the jumper came around. And play he did! With 4:20 left to play, Indiana has outscored the Knicks by 24 points in Nembhard's 34 minutes. Trevor Ruszkowski / Imagn Night, night. Knicks gave up on defense once Pascal Siakam got the offensive rebound, easy swing-swing for the dagger Andrew Nembhard 3. Jalen Brunson has only played 32 minutes and yet somehow looks totally gassed. Gregory Shamus / Getty Images Microcosm of the series right there. Pascal Siakam outhustles the tired Knicks for a loose ball, and New York gives up on the play while allowing Andrew Nembhard to stand alone all day for a wide-open 3. Getty Images Q4 4:20 - Pacers 113, Knicks 94 Tyrese Haliburton is cooking the Knicks with his floater. It's a 16-point Pacers lead — and then Andrew Nembhard hits a 3! That may as well have been the dagger. Barring a Knicks miracle that tops what Indiana did to them in Game 1, the Pacers are heading to the NBA Finals. Getty Images And now Mitchell Robinson comes in for Karl-Anthony Towns. I have a feeling we just saw Towns' last minutes of this season. Getty Images TNT keeps criticizing Karl-Anthony Towns for being too far back on the pick-and-roll but he'd be getting fried no matter what coverage he was in. Trevor Ruszkowski / Imagn Tyrese Haliburton is eating up Karl-Anthony Towns pick-and-roll coverage and taking the Knicks to float school. Karl-Anthony Towns is not moving well. He barely made it back down the floor on Miles McBride's layup, then didn't get back when Obi Toppin surged to the hole on the ensuing fast break. Nine steals from the Pacers backcourt. Andrew Nembhard can't find his jumper but he's painting his Mona Lisa defensively. Ron Hoskins / NBAE via Getty Images Q4 6:38 - Pacers 104, Knicks 88 The Knicks are not winning these crucial minutes. Instead, Andrew Nembhard is absolutely locking up Jalen Brunson. The Pacers have their biggest lead of the game and are on the verge of going to the NBA Finals! Big stretch coming up for Indiana with Pascal Siakam going to the bench and Aaron Nesmith picking up his fifth foul. This is when the Knicks need to strike. Aaron Nesmith just came up limping after fouling Karl-Anthony Towns. He subbed out and was rubbing his left knee on the bench.
