Another day, another fourth-quarter effort that fell short for the New York Knicks, who lost to the Indiana Pacers, 106-104.

Jalen Brunson had 33 and 11, Karl-Anthony Towns recorded his 12th-straight double-double, and even the slumping Mikal Bridges poured in 18 points.

Indiana was able to stave off a second-half push from the Knicks after taking a 14-point lead in the first half. They never squandered it. New York tied the game at 87 two minutes into the fourth quarter, and the Pacers followed with an 8-2 run.

Pascal Siakam closed it out for Indiana with a mid-range jumper and only seconds left. Towns’ turnaround fadeaway to force overtime bounced on and off the rim.

But it wasn’t all bad for the Knicks: some of it was great, some of it terrible. Let’s look at the good, the bad, and the ugly from a heartbreaker at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

The good: Welcome back Mikal

There is no greater positive for New York than Bridges. He entered this game averaging career-lows across the board: 5.9 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 2.1 assists on 33% shooting from the floor.

After making a public admission that he needs to “look in the mirror and be better,” he…did?

He finished with 18 points–his season-high–on eight-of-12 shooting from the field. Brunson even deferred to Bridges for the second-to-last shot.

Yes, he could have taken the wide-open three instead of dribbling into a two.

Baby steps.

New York is going to (and should) continue prioritizing him. Bridges has to play his best ball for the Knicks to play theirs.

The bad: OG Anunoby

If it weren’t for the play of Bridges, we’d be talking a lot more about OG Anunoby, who’s also cold to start the season.

Anunoby finished the loss to the Pacers with 11 points on 31% shooting with two turnovers. New York won his minutes by score of 82-to-74, thanks in large part to his defensive chops being a mainstay regardless of his offensive production.

There are so many times this season where Anunoby gets the ball, and you just don’t know what he’s going to do with it. I don’t think he does either.

In addition to shooting just 32% from deep, his production in the paint has dropped too. Last season, 17.3% of his shots attempts were dunks. This year, that number has been cut in half, averaging out at 7.7% after Friday’s loss.

Anunoby’s two-way stardom is contingent upon his ability to bulldoze inside. As a whole the Knicks are underwhelming at the rim. Of the entire league, only the Boston Celtics owe a lower percentage of their shots to to points in the paint.

Not only does Anunoby stand for some regression to the mean on his three-point shooting, but he needs to prioritize physicality inside. The whole team does.

The ugly: E stands for Effort

New York lost every battle along the margins on Friday, but none more important than the war waged on the glass.

Indiana collected 50 rebounds to their 43. And while that number may not seem entirely significant, factor in the offensive rebounding deficit which was 17-8.

We talked about Anunoby’s presence inside on offense, but on defense he finished with two rebounds. Towns finished with 15 boards, but even he left some meat on the bone with his boxing out of Ivica Zubac.

Three of the Knicks’ six losses this season came in games they were outrebounded. It’s not just the absence of Mitchell Robinson, it’s New York’s overall awareness and intensity around the rim.

There’s also the free throw battle, which for the second game in a row saw the Knicks on the losing side: the Pacers made 25 trips to the charity stripe. New York shot 13, and eight of those were Brunson.

In a playoff atmosphere like games with Indiana always warrant, this is where you win the game. The effort just wasn’t there.

Head coach Mike Brown highlighted the Knicks’ poor execution postgame:

“They physically dominated us,” Brown said after the loss November 13. “Just like in our last game against Cleveland, we lost the possession game. It’s free throw attempts, plus offensive rebounds, and you throw the turnovers in there too. We lost the possession game by 21 points…It’s gonna be hard, no matter if you’re home or on the road if you lose the possession game.”

New York will take Saturday off as they travel to Canada for a Sunday matinee against the Toronto Raptors. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00 pm EST.