JALEN Brunson drilled a go-ahead three-pointer with 4.4 seconds remaining as New York Knicks completed a late comeback to defeat Indiana Pacers, 114–113, on Thursday night (Friday in the Philippines) in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Brunson finished with 25 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists, extending New York’s winning streak to seven games. OG Anunoby sealed the result by stealing Indiana’s inbounds pass in the final seconds.
Mikal Bridges added 22 points and eight rebounds, while rookie Tyler Kolek delivered career highs of 16 points and 11 assists for the Knicks, who rallied despite being short-handed and trailing by as many as 16 points.
Indiana surged to an early 28–12 lead before New York clawed back to trail 62–59 at halftime. The Pacers rebuilt their cushion to 83–68 late in the third quarter, but the Knicks responded and took a 95–94 advantage.
After Indiana went ahead with a 10–3 run from a 99-all tie, New York again answered. Anunoby tied the game at 111 with a three-pointer with 1:51 left, setting the stage for Brunson’s decisive shot in the closing moments.
Andrew Nembhard led Indiana with 31 points on 12-of-19 shooting, including 4-of-5 from three-point range. Pascal Siakam recorded 26 points, six rebounds, and five assists, while Bennedict Mathurin contributed 16 points and eight rebounds.
Both teams were depleted in the season’s first meeting. New York was without Karl-Anthony Towns, Mitchell Robinson, Josh Hart, Deuce McBride, and Landry Shamet, while Indiana continued to miss Tyrese Haliburton, Ben Sheppard, Aaron Nesmith, and Obi Toppin.
Meanwhile, Filipino-American rookie guard Dylan Harper made his presence felt offensively as San Antonio Spurs scored a 119-94 blowout victory over Washington Wizards.
Harper, the no. 2 overall pick in the recent draft, finished with a career-high of 24 points, Victor Wembanyama continued to come off the bench and tallied 15 points, eight rebounds, four assists, and four blocks.
In other results, Charlotte Hornets stunned Atlanta Hawks, 133-126; Miami Heat defeated Brooklyn Nets, 106-95; Oklahoma City Thunder took down Los Angeles Clippers, 122-101, and Toronto Raptors prevailed over Milwaukee Bucks, 111-105./PN
