New York Knicks, Indiana Pacers
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The New York Knicks fell in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals to the Indiana Pacers despite holding a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter. The Knicks choked at the end of the game, ultimately falling short in overtime.
The sudden silence among Knicks fans spoke volumes. As the Indiana Pacers celebrated Tyrese Haliburton’s stepback buzzer beater in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals, a sellout Madison Square Garden hushed in disbelief.
Knicks fans have seen it all. They've never seen this, though: a loss so jaw-dropping that it somehow silenced the city that never sleeps.
In the final minute of overtime, an Obi Toppin follow-up dunk and nifty pass from Haliburton to a cutting Andew Nembhard gave the Pacers the spark they needed to withstand two late three-point attempts from New York stars Jalen Brunson (43 points) and Karl-Anthony Towns (35 points), which would have tied the game.
Still, because Haliburton's foot was on the line, the Knicks could avoid making history if they could recover in overtime. Instead, it was much of the same as the Pacers kept rolling, with Andrew Nembhard doing most of the damage with seven points in the extra period.