Another Garden Gut Punch: Siakam Shines as Pacers Take 2–0 Series Lead Over the Knicks

Pascal Siakam lit up the Knicks for 39 points, and despite another heroic effort from Jalen Brunson, New York couldn’t close it out again at Madison Square Garden.

Knicks lose Game 2 against the Pacers

After letting Game 1 slip through their fingers in the final minutes, watching Tyrese Haliburton send it to overtime and the Pacers steal it, Game 2 was all about answering back. And though the start was rocky, the Knicks showed they were ready to fight.

From the start, Karl-Anthony Towns won the tip and OG Anunoby got the scoring started with a smooth cut to the rim off a crisp pass from Mikal Bridges. But Indiana struck fast. Haliburton zipped around the arc, Siakam bullied his way into mid-range buckets, and Turner stamped his presence by blocking Brunson at the rim. New York’s offense sputtered early. Towns air-balled a three, Hart bricked a jumper, and OG tossed a turnover that led to a Siakam dunk. Even OG’s three was immediately answered by a deeper one from Siakam, and by the time Nembhard sank a triple, the Pacers were up 10.

But then came the swing. Brunson started to shake free, drilling a side-step three and a pull-up jumper. Deuce McBride came in firing, knocking down a transition three and a mid-range to tie the game.

That 10-0 Knicks' run flipped the momentum.

Robinson began eating the glass, OG poked away a pass for a fast-break slam, and the Garden came alive. In the final seconds, Brunson missed a floater but Robinson tipped it in, capping off a fierce turnaround as New York took a 26-24 lead after one.

Early in the second, the Knicks challenged a call that initially ruled that Robinson had knocked the ball out of bounds. After review, the call was overturned, Knicks' ball, and it set the tone for a more composed, gritty quarter. Towns, quiet in the first, caught fire. He muscled his buckets in as well as an and-one over Siakam, then followed up with another strong finish, and even buried a second-chance three that forced a Pacers timeout.

It was safe to say that while Brunson was resting, Towns was carrying much of the Knicks' offense here.

Robinson continued dominating the paint, swatting shots, dunking off a lob from Cam Payne, and disrupting everything inside. Bridges added a slick finish on a ball-movement-heavy possession, and OG came up with a timely block. Even when the Pacers pushed back with a dunk from Turner and a Nembhard three, New York kept its poise.

Then, Brunson returned to knock down a fadeaway, Hart hit free-throws, and the Knicks continued to win the battle on the glass and in the paint. Siakam kept Indiana close though, still the only Pacer in double figures, but the Knicks closed the half strong. Brunson’s footwork and shot-making gave New York the edge, while Robinson’s relentless energy earned him a thunderous ovation as he headed to the bench for a well-earned rest.

At the break, New York led 52-49, battle-tested, physical, and very much locked in.

Back for the second half, the Knicks looked to hold onto the momentum they had clawed back in the second quarter, but Indiana came out firing.

Haliburton initiated the action and Myles Turner nearly got a three to go, but it rattled out and Josh Hart secured the board. Towns missed a triple on the other end, and Siakam made them pay, burying a wide-open three to push his total to 26. Brunson’s three missed long, but the Knicks kept possession after it bounced out.

Still, sloppiness crept in.

After inbounding to OG and swinging it to Towns, Turner picked his pocket clean and Nembhard took it coast to coast. Then Hart threw a bad pass and Nembhard picked that off too. OG tied up Siakam for a jump ball, and after the Knicks won it, Bridges knocked down a mid-range jumper, only his second made shot of the night.

Turner got fouled down low and hit one of two from the line, but Towns responded with a driving layup and a hard-earned and-one through contact from Siakam. Still, Indiana came right back. Haliburton slashed inside for a thunderous dunk, then followed it with a corner-three. On the next sequence, Brunson was blocked, Towns had his put-back denied, and Nesmith finished a slashing layup.

A 7-0 Pacers run had put them ahead of the Knicks by five.

Bridges broke the drought with a wide-open look, and after a few empty trips by both teams, OG trimmed the deficit with a corner-three. Haliburton answered instantly with a step-back triple. Then Towns knocked down one of his own before Brunson tied it with a huge pull-up three that ignited the Garden and forced a Pacers timeout.

The back and forth did not stop.

Afterwards, T.J. McConnell knocked down a jumper, but Brunson answered with a slick hesitation move inside. After a brief stretch of trading steals, Hart gave one up, Brunson took it back, and Hart finished in transition. Obi Toppin matched it with a breakaway layup of his own. Brunson then missed a triple, but Bridges drilled one on the next possession. T.J. drove in for two, and Siakam added a dunk before the Knicks called time.

Brunson came out of the huddle aggressive, creating space and sinking a floater to tie it at 79. Tony Bradley split a pair of free throws, and after a Siakam spin move and score over Brunson and Robinson, the Pacers had reclaimed the lead. But Brunson, ever the magician, danced into the paint and faked out the defense for one last bucket. Nesmith launched a deep heave at the buzzer, but it missed.

Knicks and Pacers were tied at 81 heading into the fourth, with Game 2 still hanging in the balance.

The fourth quarter opened up with a rough stretch for the Knicks, marked by careless turnovers, a cold shooting start, and a red-hot Pacers run that gave Indiana control early. Despite a late push from Jalen Brunson and strong sequences from Bridges and Robinson, New York’s rally came up short in another nail-biter at the Garden.

Payne opened the quarter, but Bridges missed and Nesmith pulled down the board. T.J. McConnell hit a jumper to reach double figures, and Towns answered with two free throws after drawing Siakam’s third foul. Towns then committed his own third foul, and Turner converted a powerful dunk plus the and-one through contact from Robinson, putting Indiana up by three.

Bridges missed a layup, but Robinson’s offensive rebound kept the play alive. Bridges knocked down a turnaround jumper, but Turner scored off the glass and Sheppard buried a deep three after a McBride turnover. The Pacers jumped out to an 11-2 run, leading by six. The Knicks called timeout, but still couldn’t break through. Towns missed, then Bridges tipped it out to Payne, who also missed badly. And just like that, Siakam made it hurt with a wide-open three.

That being said, Brunson re-entered and Bridges scored again, then stole the ball from Nesmith, but misfired the transition triple. T.J. missed a three, Robinson rebounded, and Brunson assisted Bridges on a fast-break layup.

The Knicks were within five now.

Robinson blocked Haliburton at the rim, but Nesmith splashed a three. OG missed a corner look, but a series of passes ended with Brunson draining a three to cut the deficit. Bridges scored inside again, but Turner hit one of two free-throws and Siakam added a spin move finish over Brunson. After that, Robinson hit one of two at the line, but the Garden held its breath when Brunson rolled his ankle after Haliburton landed on him. Thankfully for Knicks fans, he got up slowly and remained in the game.

Bridges then hit a baseline fadeaway, trimming it to three, before Turner answered with a wide-open triple. Brunson knocked down two free-throws to reach 31 points, but Haliburton splashed a deep three to stretch the lead to seven. Brunson found Robinson under the basket, but he couldn’t convert. Siakam knocked down two more at the line, making it a nine-point game.

Subsequently, Robinson added one free-throw after Haliburton’s take foul. Siakam missed, but Brunson’s three didn’t fall. Siakam sprinted in transition and finished strong. OG had managed to cut it to eight with two free-throws, and the Knicks got a big stop as Haliburton air-balled at the end of the clock.

With under two minutes remaining in regulation, Brunson buried a deep three to cut the deficit to just five now. Turner missed from deep and Bridges grabbed the board. Brunson attacked and scored again to make it a three-point game. Indiana called timeout.

Back on the floor, Nesmith missed but grabbed his own rebound. Siakam missed and OG finally secured it. Brunson pushed the ball and fed Hart for a fast-break bucket. But then, Brunson fouled Nesmith by grabbing his jersey (a bad move by Brunson might I say), in which Nesmith calmly hit both free-throws to push the lead back to three.

Following that, Brunson fired a long three but couldn't get it to fall. Turner grabbed the board, got fouled, and sank both free-throws with just 4.2 seconds left in Game 2. The Garden fell silent. After a timeout, Brunson got the ball back from Hart and fired a final triple over Sheppard. It missed. And that was the game.

The Pacers had walked away with a 114-109 win and a 2-0 lead in the series against the Knicks.

Overall, although defeated, the Knicks had four players in double figures. Brunson towered with 36 points, Towns and Bridges matched with 20 apiece, and OG added 16.

On the Pacers’ side, all five starters and T.J. McConnell hit double figures. Siakam led the way with 39 points and three triples, Turner scored 16, Haliburton added 14, Nembhard and Nesmith had 12 each, and McConnell finished with 10 off the bench, just like he did in Game 1.

Next up, the New York Knicks will be facing the Indiana Pacers on the road for Game 3 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse (0-2) on Sunday, May 25 at 8:00 p.m. E.T.