NBA Game 7 recap and takeaways: Pacers defeat Knicks to advance in NBA Playoffs

The Indiana Pacers wrapped up their series with the New York Knicks in emphatic fashion, as they handed New York a 130-109 defeat at Madison Square Garden. We’ll take a closer look at how the Pacers were able to beat the Knicks in the decisive contest with relative ease. All statistics are sourced from Basketball Reference.

Tyrese Haliburton wasn’t shy about shooting from distance in Game 7, as he found the mark early and often. He finished with 26 points and six three-pointers. Haliburton told the NBA’s website prior to the contest, “aggressive doesn’t mean taking 30 shots”, but his 17 attempts led the Pacers for the afternoon.

Indiana made it difficult for the undermanned Knicks to stay in front of them throughout the game. The Pacers passed up good looks at the basket to get great opportunities, and moved the ball effectively throughout. They established the tempo from early on in the game, which allowed them to dictate the style of play.

Want to see more like this? Follow us here for daily sports news, profiles and analysis!

The Knicks were walking wounded heading into Game 7, and needed their bench to provide a lift. Burks did his best, scoring 26 points on 8-13 shooting from the field. CBS Sports spotlighted the guard’s contributions, even though they were a footnote in a disappointing defeat.

The Knicks have mixed and matched their frontline throughout the series, but their lack of healthy quality size hurt them in Game 7. Starting center Isaiah Hartenstein picked up three fouls in the first half, which forced New York to go smaller more than they would have liked.

Hartenstein’s foul woes were Myles Turner’s gain, as the Pacers center put his stamp on the series clinching win. He scored 17 points, but perhaps his four blocked shots were most impactful, as he affected the game as a rim-protector. Turner told The Washington Post after the tilt that he could hear a pin drop in Madison Square Garden during Indiana’s dominance.

The Knicks deployed an all hands on deck type of approach, but it was clear that O.G. Anunoby was not anywhere close to full strength. The forward started the game but played less than five minutes. The New York Post wrote that Anunoby simply couldn’t move on the court, and was quickly substituted out by Miles McBride.

 The result of the contest may have been decided by a couple of important plays in the third quarter. Coming out of a timeout, the Knicks failed to get the ball inbounds. About a minute later, New York turned the ball over again on an inbounds after a Pacers made basket. The lack of execution essentially put the game out of reach at that point.

While Turner’s performance was stellar, reserve center Isaiah Jackson also made his mark for Indiana. It felt like Jackson was all over the floor, bringing energy in transition while protecting the rim in similar fashion to Turner. Jackson’s play might be an important piece of the puzzle as Indiana moves on to the Eastern Conference Finals.

The Pacers had not defeated the Knicks in three prior games at Madison Square Garden during the series, and realized they had to come out with a greater sense of urgency. Scoring 39 points in the first frame allowed Indiana to silence a raucous New York home crowd, and they never looked back.

Want to see more like this? Follow us here for daily sports news, profiles and analysis!