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The Indiana Pacers successfully defended home court again Sunday, blowing out the New York Knicks 121-89 to win Game 4 and even up their series at two games apiece.
Injuries left New York shorthanded entering the game, and Indiana took advantage and blitzed them from the start, opening a 34-14 lead after the first quarter. By the fourth quarter, most of the Pacers starting lineup was resting on the bench.
Tyrese Haliburton led Indiana with 20 points on 8-of-15 shooting and four 3-pointers. The Pacers held the Knicks to an abysmal 33.7 percent shooting performance from the field.
Obi Toppin catches the lob and goes for the reverse 🤯 pic.twitter.com/Sf9A5d3vqm
— Indiana Pacers (@Pacers) May 12, 2024
Pacers 121, Knicks 89
Series: Tied at 2-2
Game 4: Tuesday in New York
Pacers dominated in every facet
It’s rare for a playoff game to be decided in the first quarter, but with the Pacers up by 20 points after 12 minutes of Game 4 against a hobbled Knicks team, it was difficult to come away with a different conclusion. But it wasn’t just that the Knicks were dealing with injuries, the Pacers took it to them and only gave up 14 points in the first quarter.
The Pacers were more physical. They ran faster and hit more shots. They were more focused. They executed better. The Knicks just did not have anything for the Pacers in the first quarter and that continued throughout the entire game. By halftime, the Pacers led by 28 points. In the end, the Pacers came away with a blowout victory to even the series as the two teams head back to New York City for Game 5 on Tuesday.
Haliburton led the Pacers with 20 points, six rebounds and five assists in 28 minutes and T.J. McConnell was spectacular for the Pacers with 15 points and 10 assists off the bench, but it was a complete team effort by Indiana to dispatch the Knicks with relative ease. — Eric Nehm, NBA writer
Knicks failed to show up
Nothing about this was Knicksian.
The effort, or lack thereof, was out of character for a team whose defining characteristic is its energy. The rebounding advantage belonged to Indiana, not the group that has brutalized opponents on the boards since October.
The Knicks did not get back in transition. The Pacers beat them down the floor nearly every time they could. The Knicks missed defensive rotations. They failed to grab loose balls. They were short on their jump shots.
Josh Hart, normally the personification of Red Bull, became decaffeinated. Miles “Deuce” McBride could not stay in front of McConnell. Jalen Brunson could not create space. Brunson was not on the injury report but has been dealing with a foot injury since Game 2 of this series. Over the two games in Indiana, the Pacers have roughed him up.
The Knicks, a team where Hart normally runs for 48 minutes, pulled their starters in the third quarter.
They did not look like themselves when they started, and they finished in a way they rarely do. — Fred Katz, Knicks beat writer
Monday’s schedule:
Required reading
(Photo: Dylan Buell / Getty Images)
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Courtesy : https://theathletic.com/5488460/2024/05/12/nba-playoffs-scores-takeaways-pacers-knicks-nuggets-timberwolves/