By Canadian Press

Haliburton nets 32 points as Pacers beat Knicks 130-121 to take 3-1 series lead

May 27, 2025 | 9:22 PM

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Tyrese Haliburton had 32 points, 15 assists and 12 rebounds without a turnover in a sensational post-season performance to lead the Indiana Pacers past the New York Knicks 130-121 on Tuesday night for a 3-1 lead in the Eastern Conference finals.

With his father, John, back in Gainbridge Fieldhouse, Haliburton carried the Pacers to within a victory of their second trip to the NBA Finals. Game 5 is Thursday in New York.

Former Toronto Raptor Pascal Siakam added 30 points while Haliburton had four steals in his second career post-season triple-double. Obi Toppin’s 3-pointer with 46 seconds left sealed it.

The Pacers have not lost consecutive games since March 10.

Jalen Brunson scored 31 points. Karl-Anthony Towns had 24 points and 12 rebounds, and OG Anunoby finished with 22 points. But the Knicks couldn’t rally from another double-digit deficit.

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It marked the first time in the series the home team won.

Nearly a dozen former Pacers players, including Jermaine O’Neal and Lance Stephenson, joined Haliburton’s father in the heavily gold-clad crowd. So did WWE Hall of Famer Triple H, rappers Rob 49 and 50 Cent and singers John Mellencamp and Jelly Roll.

The Knicks had their own fan section featuring film director Spike Lee and actors Timothee Chalamet and Ben Stiller.

What they witnessed was one of the most entertaining games of the NBA’s 2025 post-season. Both teams were shooting at a clip of 70 per cent long into the first quarter as the Pacers raced to a 43-35 lead. New York stormed back in the second quarter reclaiming the lead three times, the last at 64-63.

But Haliburton helped Indiana close the half on a 6-0 run to make it 69-64 as he finished the half just two rebounds short of a triple-double.

Indiana then opened the second half with an even more aggressive style that spurred a 9-2 run and closed the quarter on a 9-4 spurt to extend the margin to 102-91. Siakam scored the final five points of a 9-3 run early in the fourth to give Indiana a 110-96 lead.

New York got as close as six three times in the closing minutes, but Towns limped to the bench after hurting his left knee with 2:11 to play and finished the game.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Michael Marot, The Associated Press