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With Reggie Miller on the call, Indiana Pacers paid tribute to their franchise legend on Wednesday night.
It was not a direct tribute-but New York Knicks in their first Eastern Conference Final Games in the 21st century a double-digit fourth quarter lead to Drop Game 1 against Indiana, 138-135.
New York led by as many as 17 with just over six minutes left, and even with 14 with less than three, but it was no match for Pacers.
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Indiana Pacers Guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) celebrates with teammates after tying the game in the fourth quarter to send the game for overtime against New York Knicks under Game One by Eastern Conference Finals for 2025 NBA Playoffs in Madison Square Garden. (Brad Penner-Preferred Pictures)
Aaron Nesmith made his best Miller impression by drilling six consecutive three-points to help Indiana cut their deficit to only two points by 22.1 seconds to go. After Knicks on two occasions went 1-for-2 from the line, Tyrese Haliburton hit a Summer beating, which he thought was a three and made Miller’s notorious choke signal as he pointed to him. But Haliburton’s toe was on the field and the game went to overtime.
New York came out to a four-point lead to start overtime, but a 5-0 pacers race gave them their first lead when it was 45-44 in the second quarter. No team came out to more than a one-point lead in the next two-plus minutes until the former Knick Obi Toppin threw a home with 15.3 seconds left to go up three. Knicks missed two game-binding triangles and Pacers stole the victory.
Teams that led an end game with nine-plus points in the last minute of the fourth quarter or overtime of an endgame had been 1,414-0 since 1998 coming in Wednesday.
Since 1997, teams are now 4-1,640 when they pull with seven-plus points in the last minute of the fourth quarter or overtime in an endgame pacers have won three of these matches this season alone.
May 21, 2025; New York, New York, USA; Indiana Pacers Guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) shoots against New York Knick’s -Guard Josh Hart (3) in overtime during match one of the eastern conference final for 2025 NBA playing games in Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Preferred Pictures (Brad Penner-Preferred Pictures)
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Unfortunately for Knicks, it was a taste of their own medicine-they had completed comebacks of 20, 20 and 14 points against Boston Celtics to win their second round series.
Haliburton and Nesmith had 31 and 30 points respectively – 20 of Nesmiths came in the epic fourth quarter.
Jalen Brunson led the way with 43 points, while Karl-Anthony Towns had 35 plus 12 rebounds-but none of them hit their game-binding three-pointers in the last seconds.
This series is a new match for the second round last year, which Indiana won in seven games against an injury-riddled Knicks team, but it is also the one that Knicks faced in both 1999 and 2000 Eastern Conference Finals teams split both of these series.
Indiana Pacers Guard Tyrese Haliburton (0) creates a choke movement against New York Knicks after hitting a shot at the end of the fourth quarter of Game 1 by NBA Basketball Eastern Conference Final, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
In fact, Knicks and Pacers faced each other four times in the playoffs in the 1990s, with both teams won a couple. Both New York’s victories sent them to the NBA final.
Now the rivalry is warmer than ever. Game 2 is Friday night in Madison Square Garden.
And if there is any rescuing grace for Knicks, they would win up winning the series where Miller hit them with his choke signal.
