Pacers sink the Knicks to reach NBA Finals
Pascal Siakam has scored 31 points, Tyrese Haliburton had 21 points and 13 assists, and Indiana pulled away for a 125-108 victory over New York in the Eastern Conference Finals' Game 6 to reach the NBA Finals for the second time in franchise history.
Obi Toppin added 18 points and six rebounds against his former team as the gold-clad crowd gave the starters a roaring ovation when they departed with 47.2 seconds left.
The Pacers will visit Oklahoma City for Game 1 on Thursday night.
OG Anunoby led the Knicks on Saturday night with 24 points. Karl-Anthony Towns had 22 points and 14 rebounds, while Jalen Brunson added 19 points as Indiana's relentless ball pressure forced New York into 17 turnovers.
The Knicks still have not reached the Finals since 1999, and they couldn't extend the series in a game that was tough and physical right from the start.
Whether it was Towns limping after drawing a foul or Haliburton holding his jaw when he took a shot that knocked him to the ground, the tone was set early — and never really changed with so much at stake.
Indiana finally broke open a close game by starting the second half on a 9-0 run to take a 78-63 lead courtesy of three straight three-pointers — two from Thomas Bryant and one from Andrew Nembhard. The run ignited the crowd, which included everyone from Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson to WNBA star Caitlin Clark to Timothee Chalamet to Kylie Jenner.
But when the Knicks answered with eight straight to cut the deficit to 78-71, the Pacers responded with another 9-0 run to take their biggest lead of the game and New York were forced to play catch-up the rest of the night.
The Knicks, who haven't won a title since 1973, were trying to become the 14th team in league history to rally from a 3-1 deficit to win a series.
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Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton limped through parts of Sunday's loss as Oklahoma City pressured him with multiple defenders after he'd snatched victory with a heart-stopping floater to end Game 1 - his fourth game-winner of these playoffs. Haliburton said on Tuesday he has a "lower body thing" impacting him but plans to play in Game 3. Gilgeous-Alexander is expecting the unexpected. "A series is so tricky. It definitely is a feeling-out," he said. "But there's also so many adjustments made to where it's almost hard to predict and try to determine what they're going to do with you. You kind of just have to be ready for everything." Getting to the rim has been a tall order for Indiana. The Pacers have been outscored by 20 points in the paint. But resolve has been a major trait helping define the team's success, and they're 4-0 in the playoffs following a loss. To take control of the Finals, Carlisle is stressing the importance of tamping down turnovers without losing contact with the accelerator. "This team that we're playing now presents unprecedented challenges because they've been turning everybody over through the entire playoffs," Carlisle said. Oklahoma City's defensive approach is likely to be similar to Game 2 until the Pacers prove they can handle the on-ball energy. But how Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault executes his plan is quite literally anyone's guess. He used more than 700 lineup combinations during the regular season, more than any team in the league, and found unique groups to gain an edge on the boards in Game 2. "We have a group of guys that are just ready to play," Thunder guard Jalen Williams said. "Everybody is kind of waiting for their opportunity. "We have so many different lineups throughout the course of the year that nobody is shocked by when Mark wants to go small, change this around or do that." Daigneault doesn't take credit for throwing a changeup or two. "The general battle we're trying to win is the possession battle. There's different ways to do that," Daigneault said. "We have optionality. Every game is different."
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The Indiana Pacers are looking for a boost from being at home and answers for slowing down Shai Gilgeous-Alexander going into Game 3 of the NBA Finals. With the best-of-seven series tied 1-1 nothing is settled, but the Pacers must rebound from a 123-107 thumping by Oklahoma City in Game 2, having stolen a 111-110 win in Game 1. The Pacers led for just 0.3 seconds in Game 1 and a total of one minute and 56 seconds of a possible 96 minutes in the first two games. NBA MVP Gilgeous-Alexander drove the Thunder to their big win on Sunday and has 72 points through two games, the most ever in the first two games of a Finals debut. Pacers coach Rick Carlisle has constantly reminded his young team not to unpack any of the good, bad or ugly from the first two games as they embrace their home-floor opportunity on Wednesday. "Everything that's already happened doesn't matter, other than the score of the series," Carlisle said. Pacers star Tyrese Haliburton limped through parts of Sunday's loss as Oklahoma City pressured him with multiple defenders after he'd snatched victory with a heart-stopping floater to end Game 1 - his fourth game-winner of these playoffs. Haliburton said on Tuesday he has a "lower body thing" impacting him but plans to play in Game 3. Gilgeous-Alexander is expecting the unexpected. "A series is so tricky. It definitely is a feeling-out," he said. "But there's also so many adjustments made to where it's almost hard to predict and try to determine what they're going to do with you. You kind of just have to be ready for everything." Getting to the rim has been a tall order for Indiana. The Pacers have been outscored by 20 points in the paint. But resolve has been a major trait helping define the team's success, and they're 4-0 in the playoffs following a loss. To take control of the Finals, Carlisle is stressing the importance of tamping down turnovers without losing contact with the accelerator. "This team that we're playing now presents unprecedented challenges because they've been turning everybody over through the entire playoffs," Carlisle said. Oklahoma City's defensive approach is likely to be similar to Game 2 until the Pacers prove they can handle the on-ball energy. But how Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault executes his plan is quite literally anyone's guess. He used more than 700 lineup combinations during the regular season, more than any team in the league, and found unique groups to gain an edge on the boards in Game 2. "We have a group of guys that are just ready to play," Thunder guard Jalen Williams said. "Everybody is kind of waiting for their opportunity. "We have so many different lineups throughout the course of the year that nobody is shocked by when Mark wants to go small, change this around or do that." Daigneault doesn't take credit for throwing a changeup or two. "The general battle we're trying to win is the possession battle. There's different ways to do that," Daigneault said. "We have optionality. Every game is different."
