The Indiana Pacers stormed back to defeat the New York Knicks 138-135 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals Wednesday.
New York led by nine with 58 seconds remaining, but Indiana forced overtime after a wild sequence that concluded in a basket for Tyrese Haliburton as the regulation buzzer sounded. Haliburton thought he won the game, but a replay review showed Haliburton's foot was on the line, sending the game to an extra period.
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, teams that trailed by nine-plus points in the final minute of the fourth quarter or OT of a playoff game were 0-1,414 since 1998 entering Wednesday. Indiana also is the first team in the play-by-play era (since 1998) to force overtime or win after trailing by at least nine points in the final minute of a playoff game, per Elias.
Haliburton led the Pacers with 31 points and 11 assists, while Aaron Nesmith added 30 points -- tying his career high -- with eight 3-pointers, a franchise record.
Jalen Brunson had 37 points and five assists. It marked the 11th time he has had at least 35 points and five assists in a single playoff game during his time with the Knicks. Only seven other players have had a similar stat line in a postseason game in franchise history. Karl-Anthony Towns showed out, too, dropping 33 points and making 10 rebounds.
Here are the best moments from a memorable Pacers-Knicks Game 1.
