0-2 behind! Knicks are in desperate situation, Brunson 36+11, Halliburton is a quasi-double, Sika makes a contribution

Editor|Lao Kankanqiu

On May 24, the second game of the NBA 2024-25 playoff Eastern Conference Final officially kicked off the series. The New York Knicks continued to sit at home and faced the Indiana Pacers. Surprisingly, in the G1 game, the Knicks led by 14 points in the last 2 minutes and 50 seconds of the final quarter. Before that, in the NBA's nearly 27 years of playoff history, there have been a total of 970 times, with a winning rate of 0 losses and 970 wins. After G1, the Pacers rewritten this number to 1 losses and 970 wins, which is indeed amazing. What's even more awesome is that so far in the playoffs, the Pacers have lagged behind 7+ points three times with one minute left in the final quarter, completing a shocking reversal. It is no exaggeration to say that the Pacers are the team with the strongest resilience and most miracles this season.

In addition, according to statistics from US media B/R, so far this year's playoffs, Halliburton made 4 of 4 shots and hit a 100% shooting percentage, which is simply outrageous. When he tied or overtook the ball in the last 90 seconds, he made 5 of 6 shots, which was comparable to James in 2018. Interestingly, at the end of the regular season, when the US media announced the most overrated player in the NBA, Halliburton ranked first. Now, Halliburton slapped these people with practical actions. Before the game, US media ESPN also gave a prediction of the winning rate of today's game: the Pacers' winning rate has increased to 51.3% (compared with G1, only 47.7%), and the Knicks' winning rate has dropped to 48.7%. Obviously, the US media's scalp has begun to tilt towards the Pacers. In terms of starting lineup, all players can play on the Knicks side. The starting five-man teams lined up by coach Thibodeau are: Towns, Brunson, Bridges, OG Anunobi, Hart; on the Pacers, Isaiah Jackson continues to be absent, and the starting lineup is: Halliburton, Turner, Nesmith, Sika, and Nembhard.

The first quarter started, OG-Anonobi made a strong breakthrough and the Knicks took the lead. Siakam hit the middle distance in a row with a single in a row, then made another three-pointer in a large open position, and one player scored 11 points in a row, completely breaking out. OG-Anunobi broke into the inside and passed the ball to Towns, who made an unexpected three-pointer shot. Nesmith counterattacked and shook Towns with a three-pointer and raised his hand, which continued the hot touch of the last game. The Pacers led by 10 points. The Knicks counterattacked Brunson and rushed straight to the inside in one-stop. They encountered four double-teams and then sniped McBride. The latter received the ball in a large open space and took the knife and stopped the bleeding in time. Tob and Robinson were fighting for the rebound, and they accidentally poked their fingers. The body curled up and looked very painful. Halliburton still failed to make a strong three-pointer. He is currently not scoring 0 of 3 points. Brunson scored another three-pointer. The Knicks responded with a 10-0 equalizer. Mitchell Robinson grabbed the offensive rebound again, Brunson made an all-match dunk with a light throw. After the first quarter, the Knicks overtook the Pacers 26-24 and 2 points. In the first quarter, Siakam made 6 of 9 shots, made 1 of 2 three-pointers and scored 16 points and 2 rebounds, plus or negative values ​​+5.

Back in the second quarter, Siakam made a difficult move. After knocking the basket, he was lucky to fall in and had extra free throws. Miro took the pick-and-roll and Penn and sent the ultimate assist. The former completed the all-resisting stretch dunk and responded immediately. Miro changed defense to the top and then sent a big hat to cover the sky. He has now scored 4 rebounds and 2 blocks. Towns got a long rebound, made a decisive three-pointer and turned around to celebrate with a domineering look. The Knicks led by 7 points. Nembhard hit a three-pointer against Towns, Turner took off directly and completed a heavy drop in both hands. The Pacers took the lead and stopped the Knicks. Turner turned around and passed Hart, and unexpectedly missed the empty basket. Brunson singled out Nembhard and made consecutive shots. At the end of the half, the Knicks led the Pacers by 3 points 52-49.

Half-court data, on the Knicks, Brunson made 6 of 11 shots, scored 17 points, 2 rebounds and 3 assists, but made 3 mistakes; Robinson scored 4 points and 7 rebounds (3 frontcourt rebounds), with a plus-negative value + 13 highest in the game.

The Pacers, Halliburton performed poorly, with 1 of 7 shots, 0 of 4 three-pointers and only 2 points, 3 rebounds and 5 assists; Siakam made 9 of 14 shots, 1 of 3 three-pointers and 1 of 3 rebounds and 1 assist, and no one in the team scored double-digit points; Nesmith made 2 of 2 shots, 1 of 1 three-pointers and 1 of 1 of 5 points and 4 rebounds, with the highest plus and minus value + 7.

The side changes again, Siakam received the ball from the top of the arc and made a decisive three-pointer, and the Pacers equalized the score. OG-Anunobi was entangled with Siakam, the referee made a penalty to compete, Halliburton scored a counterattack around the pick-and-roll dunk, and then made another three-pointer in the bottom corner, scoring 5 points in a row to widen the gap to 5 points. Towns received the ball from the outside and took a confident move. Halliburton responded immediately when he took a three-pointer against Towns. OG-Anunobi and Brunson then made three-pointers in a row, and the Knicks equalized the score and stopped the Pacers. Brunson saved the ball after stealing, Hart easily put it in the empty basket, and Halliburton immediately passed it to Totto in the backcourt, completing the offensive in 2 seconds. After three quarters, the two sides fought until the draw 81-81.

The final match in the fourth quarter, Turner scored 2+1 and scored a mid-range shot. Shepard and Siakam made another three-pointer from the outside, and the Pacers led by 9 points. Bridges made a high layup with Brunson's pick-and-roll, and after Halliburton made a three-pointer, he broke through to attract defense and assisted Turner to hit a three-pointer. The Pacers led by 10 points. Brunson scored 5 points in a row with a sudden foreign shot, and the Knicks returned a 7-0 win to a 3-point difference. At the last moment, Brunson wanted a three-pointer and made a long shot. In the end, the Pacers defeated the Knicks 114-109 and scored two consecutive games. The Knicks fell behind 0-2 and were already in a desperate situation.. In terms of data, on the Knicks, Brunson made 13 of 27 shots and scored 36 points, 3 rebounds and 11 assists; Anunobi scored 16 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist and 2 steals; Towns scored 20 points, 7 rebounds and 4 fouls; Hart contributed 6 points, 6 rebounds and 1 assist.

On the Pacers, Halliburton made 5 of 16 shots, scoring 14 points, 8 rebounds, 11 assists, with a quasi-triple double-digit score; Siakam made a contribution, scoring 39 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists; Nesmith scored 12 points, 7 rebounds, 1 block; Turner scored 15 points, 3 rebounds, 2 blocks.