Losing the first two games of a playoff series is never ideal. Suffering two defeats in heartbreaking fashion is even more suboptimal. This is exactly what the Indiana Pacers experienced after they lost two very winnable games to start off their second-round matchup against the New York Knicks. In Game 2, the Pacers blew a double-digit first-half lead, letting a golden opportunity to steal homecourt advantage slip as the Knicks came storming back to finish with a 130-121 victory.
But the worst thing the Pacers could do now is to lose the mental game. It might be frustrating to lose two close games, especially when the opportunity to send the fans at Madison Square Garden home sad was right in their fingertips, but they absolutely cannot lose their composure. The good thing is that they remain focused on the job at hand, with Tyrese Haliburton staying confident in his team’s ability to bounce back, especially with the series heading to Indianapolis.
“At the end of the day it’s 2-0, we’re going back to Indy and I like us in any matchup. I’m not worried,” Haliburton said in his postgame presser, per the official NBA TV Twitter (X) account.
The Pacers are undefeated so far in the playoffs at home, and the crowd at Gainbridge Fieldhouse is always fired up come playoff time. There are plenty of reasons for Tyrese Haliburton and company to be confident, and they’ll surely have all the incentive in the world to give it their all in Game 3 as they try to avoid going down 3-0 — a death sentence — in their matchup against the Knicks.
Tyrese Haliburton is making no excuses
Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle was consumed by frustrations to end Game 2, with his last straw being the officials’ decision to overturn what would have been a crucial double dribble call on Knicks center Isaiah Hartenstein. Carlisle was irate on the sidelines, and he racked up two technical fouls in quick succession shortly thereafter.
But Carlisle was not done yet; the Pacers head coach expressed his dismay over the officiating during his postgame presser, even pointing out a specific instance where Josh Hart blatantly shoved Tyrese Haliburton and got away with it in the third quarter.
When the officiating doesn’t go your way in crucial moments, it can be triggering. But the Pacers lost their way even before some of the calls purportedly went against them. The Pacers led by 10 at halftime of Game 2, and yet they ended the third quarter of the same game down by eight to the Knicks — an 18-point turnaround in the third quarter alone.
The Pacers lost their rhythm offensively, and the Knicks, in addition to being very efficient from the field, crashed the glass with reckless abandon. New York, simply put, outplayed Indiana in the second half. Even Tyrese Haliburton admitted this.
“At the end of the day we got outplayed. We were right there to win the game. Would I like more consistency [from officials]? Yeah. But let’s not pretend that’s the only reason we lost. We just didn’t play good enough. … They outplayed us. Let’s not pretend like the refs are the reason we lost. We just got to be better.” Haliburton said.
The Pacers star comes alive, albeit in defeat
One of the main stories coming out of Game 1 was that Tyrese Haliburton has to take more initiative in hunting his own shot. Haliburton finished with just six points on six shot attempts in the first game of the series, and his lackluster play was made all the more frustrating by the fact that the Pacers only lost by four.
In Game 2, Haliburton came out of the gates firing; he finished with 22 first-half points as he looked to be more aggressive, and the Pacers benefitted from it. He was on fire from beyond the arc, and Indiana went out and built a double-digit lead thanks in large part to his efforts.
Of course, the second half was a different story. Haliburton was mostly invisible as the Knicks came roaring back with a 36-18 third quarter. Defending became a struggle for the Pacers as they were caught in a feedback loop, allowing plenty of opportunities for the Knicks to attack a defense that wasn’t quite set as Indiana went ice cold from the field.
Haliburton still finished with 34 points to lead all scorers, and this newfound aggression only bodes well for the Pacers moving forward. In front of a raucous Gainbridge Fieldhouse crowd, Haliburton now has to sustain this level of play, or even elevate it even further, as Indiana looks to avoid falling into an insurmountable series deficit on Friday night.
