Indiana Pacers trounce New York Knicks to edge closer to NBA final
In addition to collecting his second career postseason triple-double, Haliburton made five 3-pointers and four steals to help the Pacers take a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.
He promised; he delivered.
Tyrese Haliburton was the unstoppable man on a mission Tuesday night as his 32 points, 15 assists and 12 rebounds without a single turnover led the Indiana Pacers to a 130-121 victory over the New York Knicks in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals in Indianapolis.
In addition to collecting his second career postseason triple-double, Haliburton made five 3-pointers and four steals to help the Pacers take a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Pascal Siakam scored 30 points, Bennedict Mathurin added 20 in 12 minutes off the bench and Aaron Nesmith contributed 16 points for fourth-seeded Indiana.
Jalen Brunson scored 31 points, Karl-Anthony Towns had 24 points and 12 rebounds and OG Anunoby added 22 points for the Knicks. Mikal Bridges scored 17 points and Josh Hart added 12 points and 11 rebounds as they fell at the hands of a determined Pacers outfit.
Game 5 is Thursday in New York, where the Knicks will be required to win to save their season and force a game six.
The Knicks made 46.3% of their shots and were 12-of-28 from three-point range.
New York had a 44-33 rebounding edge.
The Pacers scored the first seven points of the second half to conclude a 13-0 run and grab a 76-64 advantage.
The Knicks reduced the deficit to 89-84 after two free throws by Brunson with 3:59 left in the third quarter, but a 3-pointer by Haliburton made it 99-89 with 55.6 seconds left in the period and the Pacers took a 102-91 lead into the final quarter.
Siakam scored five straight points early in the quarter to give Indiana its largest lead at 111-96.
But New York scored seven straight to move within 115-109 after a putback by Towns with 4:24 left.
Indiana, however, maintained its pace and the lead was 126-116 after Obi Toppin drilled a 3-pointer with 45 seconds left.
Haliburton was electric in the first half with 20 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds as the Pacers led 69-64 at the break.
Indiana scored the final six points of the half. Brunson scored 16 in the half for New York.
The Oklahoma City Thunder lead the Minnesota Timberwolves 3-1 in the other Semifinal match-up as the business end of the NBA season reaches its climax.
