Jalen Brunson suffered discomfort in his foot and OG Anunoby He retired with a hamstring injury, but the New York Knicks They rebelled against adversity and this Wednesday sealed an epic 130-121 victory over the Indiana Pacers to go 2-0 in the NBA Eastern Conference semifinals.
Brunson, the big star of these Playoffs and the new idol of the ‘Big Apple’, had four games in a row with more than 40 points and tonight he went to the locker room in the first quarter.
He did not play the second, he returned at halftime as a hero amid cries of “MVP” from Madison Square Garden and closed his memorable evening with 29 points and 5 assists.
In a twist of fate, today marked 54 years since on May 8, 1970, Willis Reed, who was injured, surprised everyone in New York playing the seventh game of the Finals and the Knicks ended up winning the ring.
For his part, Anunoby was having a great game (28 points) when he left due to injury in the third quarter.
However, these Knicks, who have made anger and suffering their DNA, They are experts in Numantine resistanceas they have experienced an ordeal of injuries this season.
In these playoffs they cannot count on fundamental names from their rotation such as Julius Randle, Bojan Bogdanovic and Mitchell Robinson.
But the extreme and usually very small rotation of Tom Thibodeau (Josh Hart played his second game in a row without resting for a single second), once again showed its face.
Donte DiVincenzo He added 28 points and 6 rebounds, and Hart (19 points, 15 rebounds and 7 assists) and Isaiah Hartenstein (14 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists) reached the triple-double for the Knicks who were superior in rebounding (44-34).
After the New Yorkers won the first duel on Monday with 43 points from Brunson and several controversial plays in the outcome, the Pacers missed another opportunity to snatch home-court advantage.
Tyrese Haliburton He reacted to his weak first game and dazzled with 34 points, 6 rebounds and 9 assists. Obi Toppin He accompanied him with 20 points.
The series now travels to Indianapolis, where game three will be played on Friday.
