The New York Knicks and Indiana Pacers have renewed their playoff rivalry in the 2024 NBA postseason. The Knicks, who have played nail-biters all playoffs long, won another thriller in Monday’s Game 1, edging the Pacers by four points in a game that featured multiple controversial calls in the final minute. The sixth-seeded Pacers will try to bounce back on Wednesday as the series continues at Madison Square Garden.
Knicks guard Jalen Brunson scored a game-high 43 points in the series opener, but the Pacers entered the fourth quarter with a five-point lead and had chances to win the game late. Myles Turner — who had a team-high 23 points for Indiana — was whistled for an illegal screen with 12 seconds left that prevented the Pacers from having the chance to take the lead.
The Knicks and Pacers met six times in the playoffs over an eight-year span between 1993 and 2000. The names are different this time around. Instead of Miller and Patrick Ewing, it’s Brunson and Tyrese Haliburton. The stakes, however, are just as high. The winner will advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Here’s everything you need to know as the Knicks and Pacers continue their renewed rivalry.
Knicks vs. Pacers schedule, scores
All times Eastern | * If necessary
- Game 1: Knicks 121, Pacers 117 — New York leads 1-0
- Game 2: Wednesday, May 8 — Pacers at Knicks, 8:00 p.m., TNT
- Game 3: Friday, May 10 — Knicks at Pacers, 7:00 p.m., ESPN/fubo
- Game 4: Sunday, May 12 — Knicks at Pacers, 3:30 p.m., ABC/fubo
- Game 5*: Tuesday, May 14 — Pacers at Knicks
- Game 6*: Friday, May 17 — Knicks at Pacers
- Game 7*: Sunday, May 19 — Pacers at Knicks
Knicks vs. Pacers, Game 2
Where to watch
Time: 8 p.m. ET | Date: Wednesday, May 8
Location: Madison Square Garden — New York City
TV channel: TNT | Streaming: Watch TNT, Max
Storylines
Jalen Brunson is on a historic scoring streak. Brunson scored 43 points in Monday’s Game 1 win, and he’s now scored at least 40 points in four consecutive playoff games. It puts Brunson in elite company. Only three other NBA playoffs have pulled off this feat: Michael Jordan, the last to do it in 1993, Bernard King and Jerry West, who went for 40 in a record six straight playoff games in 1965. Factor in Brunson’s assists and he’s in a class of his own. The Knicks star is the first player in NBA history to have at least 40 points and at least five assists in four consecutive playoff games.
And the Knicks have needed all his production. New York is 3-1 in those four games, and each one has been decided by six points or less.
“Yeah, the 40 points are cool and all, but it’s the little things that help us win games like that. So I’m just happy to have the group of guys that I do,” Brunson told reporters after Game 1.
Prediction
Opening series odds: Knicks -265, Pacers +210
Series odds after Game 1: Knicks -350, Pacers +275
One of the lessons of Game 1 was that New York has ways of slowing down Indiana’s star point guard, but the Pacers have absolutely nothing for the leader of the Knicks. Jalen Brunson may not outscore Tyrese Haliburton by 37 points in every game, but I just have more trust in New York’s ability to generate the hard points it will need late to win than I do Indiana’s. The Pick: Knicks -4.5
