It was too close for comfort at times, but the Indiana Pacers held off several second-half challenges from the New York Knicks to win at home.
The Good: The Indiana Pacers didn’t lose at home to the New York Knicks. That’s good enough for me.
The Bad: Losing an 11-point lead, which then became a 7-point deficit in the 3rd quarter. Basketball is a game of runs, but the Pacers don’t have to give up the lead all the time. This is a struggling Knicks team after all. Part of the issue was the bench giving up points, but it is just frustrating to see a team continue to struggle to finish out games like this. The Knicks kept in the game thanks to their 3-point shooting. They were 50% from beyond the arc (13 of 26) and usually the Pacers do better defending those shots.
The Pacers took the lead again near the end of the game, but a six-point lead started to dissolve and allowed the Knicks to creep back within two. Thankfully a Kristaps Porzingis 3-pointer missed and Myles Turner grabbed the rebound, hit one of his free-throws, and Indiana held on for the win.
MVP: After going 1 of 9 for 2 points in the first half, Paul George was 9 of 14 for 25 second-half points. He grabbed 7 rebounds, 6 assists, a steal, and only had two turnovers in the game, as well as those 27 total points.
More from 8 Points, 9 Seconds
- 2 Studs, 1 dud from gut-wrenching Indiana Pacers loss to Charlotte Hornets
- Handing out early-season grades for Pacers’ Bruce Brown, Obi Toppin
- 3 positives, 2 negatives in Pacers In-Season Tournament win vs. Cavaliers
- 2 positives, 3 negatives from first week of Indiana Pacers basketball
- Should Isaiah Jackson’s days with Indiana Pacers be numbered?
LVP: Don’t really have one player for the Pacers. None of the starters really had a “bad” game and the bench players made the most of their time on the floor. The defense was shaky at times, but I don’t feel like any one Pacer was responsible.
X-Factor: Myles Turner was 10 of 20 from the field and 4 of 5 from the line for 23 points and grabbed a critical rebound after Porzingis’ miss late in the game. He mixed up how he scored, showing a little range and a hook shot as well. It is fun to watch him get better game by game.