The New York Knicks had several men in sick bay for Thursday’s game against the Indiana Pacers. Fortunately for the visiting Manhattanites, they had their captain at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Jalen Brunson’s clutch three-pointer with just over four seconds remaining was enough to give the depleted Knicks a 114-113 win over the Pacers. The win gives the Knicks six in a row (not counting Tuesday’s NBA Cup-clinching victory in Las Vegas) and a quantum of revenge against the team that ended each of their last two seasons.
Brunson led the Knicks with 25 points in a backcourt showcase that also featured the first career double-double for Tyler Kolek (16 points, 11 assists). Kolek’s fellow reserve Jordan Clarkson likewise tallied double-figures, totaling 18 in relief with a 5-of-9 mark from three.
Ailing from the recent Vegas vacation, New York (19-7) played Thursday’s game without Josh Hart, Mitchell Robinson, or Karl-Anthony Towns. That led to several depth stars getting extended opportunities, including Ariel Hukporti and Mohamaed Diawara, the latter making his first NBA start. Buried bench men like Pacome Dadiet, Trey Jemison, and Kevin McCullar also got to partake in their first major action this season.
The hosting Pacers took advantage early on: dealing with its own lasting medical issues, Indiana jumped out to a 16-point lead before the first quarter let out. Andrew Nembhard, one of the few leftovers from last year’s Eastern Conference Finals, hit 4-of-5 to start in the opening dozen.
Propelled by the entry of Kolek (hitting 4-of-5 while dishing out nine assists in the second), the Knicks chopped the lead down to three by halftime but an 11-2 Indiana run in the midway portions of the third re-established the sizable advantage. Late threes from Kolek and Mikal Bridges narrowed the gap to manageable six entering the final frame.
Further swished collaboration from Bridges and Kolek gave the Knicks their first lead since the opening stanzas just before four minutes went by in the fourth but Indiana seemed to finally have a run that would put the shorthanded New Yorkers out of their misery. Clarkson had hit a three to give the Knicks the lead back but threes from Nembhard and Quenton Jackson re-established their advantage to seven.
Threes from OG Anunoby once again posted an equal score but Brunson misfired on two attempts at a go-ahead in the last 80 seconds. When Pascal Siakam gave the Pacers the lead back at the foul line, though, the third time proved to be the charm for Brunson, whose stepback tally created the final margin.
Indiana did have the final four seconds to work with, an apparent eternity in the modern NBA, but Anunoby took care of that when he swatted Jay Huff’s inbounds pass. Siakam prevented him an emphatic finale by blocking his fastbreak attempt but Kolek secured the rebound, his sixth, to seal New York’s fate.
Nembhard paced the Pacers (6-21) with 31 points, which wasn’t enough to keep them out of their third straight loss. Still working without recurring Knicks foes like Tyrese Haliburton and Obi Toppin, the Pacers were once again denied a chance to grant head coach and former New Yorker Rick Carlisle the 1000th win of his bench career.
The Pacers will make their way to Madison Square Garden in February, where a harsh reception likely awaits. In the meantime, the Knicks immediately return to action on Friday night, as a divisional duel against the Philadelphia 76ers awaits in Manhattan (7 p.m. ET, MSG/Prime Video).
