In Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the buzzer triggers the Indiana Pacers overtime, where the buzzer triggers overtime for the Indiana Pacers.
Tyrese Halliburton was sure his jumper was in when restrictions ended, but he wasn’t sure it had been after it bouncing high from the rim and hanging into the air for what felt like eternity.
He thought it was a 3-pointer to win the game, so he quickly realized it was a two-tie. There’s a lot to deal with, then there’s only one idea that overtime is looming.
“Then my focus was just winning that,” Halliburton said.
The Pacers finished a spectacular rally, beating the New York Knicks 138-135 in overtime on Wednesday night in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Knicks led by 14 points and were under three minutes in regulation, but Aaron Nesmith brought back the pacer with a gust of three-pointers.
Halliburton wanted him to win it with another person. As Pacer drove down twice, he began to lose control of his dribbling, regaining it and dribbling towards the 3-point line. He fired the jumper and when it finally fell, he ran towards a side hustle and signalled the crowd to a choke, as Pacers Hall of Famer Reggie Miller did Lee, leading the Indiana comeback in the 1994 playoff game.
The replay confirmed that Halliburton’s toes were on the line and two pointers tied together at 125. Andrew Nenbird finally made a go-ahead basket with 26 seconds remaining after work.
Game 2 of the Top 7 Series is on Friday night.
Halliburton scored 31 points and 11 assists. Nesmith finished with 30 points and went 9-9 from the 3-point range.
Knicks were surprised by the Pacers’ slow surge.
It was the thrilling start of the ninth playoff matchup between these fierce rivals in the 1990s, but it was the Knicks’ deflation finish in their first Eastern Conference final game since 2000.
Jalen Brunson scored 43 points, while Karl-Anthony Towns scored 35 points and 12 rebounds. However, the Knicks were unable to protect the big lead they had built while Branson was on the bench in foul trouble in the fourth quarter, collapsed unlike the rest of the postseason.
The team leading at least 14 points ahead at the final 2:45 of the fourth quarter was 994-0 since the detailed play record began in 1997-98.
“Give them a lot of credit. They closed the game like they’re making all the playoffs,” Branson said. “It’s not very good on our part.”
The Pacers routed a team broken by injured players by beating the Knicks in Game 7 of the East Semi-Finals held at Madison Square Garden last year.
This is a completely different way, with Pacers getting out of the game after a 14-0 run against Branson, who pushed New York’s two-point lead to 108-92.
Even after Nesmith began to get hot, the Knicks looked safe when Branson’s 3-pointer went 119-105 at 2:51.
However, Nesmith would later hit three seconds in a row, and when the Knicks intentionally fouled him, he couldn’t try to tie it up with another, giving Indiana the chance to tie Halliburton’s final two-second shot.
