Round two between the Indiana Pacers (0-1; 48-38-3 ATS) and New York Knicks (1-0; 46-40-3 ATS) is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. EDT on Wednesday. Madison Square Garden is a busy place right now, and it will be the hosting venue for this battle too. The Knicks controversially took game one 121-117 on Monday.

Pacers Let it Slip (With Help)

A lot of the ref’s calls at the end of game one seemed to favor the Knicks. Regardless, now is not the time for the Pacers to rely on excuses. Rather, they need to keep scoring as they did during the regular season. Game one’s 117 was encouraging, as this club is now up to 113.6 points per contest in the postseason. Indiana is only turning the ball over 9.6 times per game, the fewest in the playoffs. If there is a flaw to find for the NBA’s highest-scoring offense, it is that they have only hit 72.2% of their free throws in the playoffs. Offensive rebounding isn’t an area where the Pacers should thrive either. Regardless, excellent efficiency from every area of the floor guided this group to the league’s third-highest true shooting percentage. It has Indiana threatening to beat the Knicks in the second round too. 

With all of the offense in the world, Indiana still has clear issues defensively. They gave up the fourth-most points per game this season and have followed it up by surrendering 111.7 in the playoffs, more than any other team still alive. In game one, a team that was 26th in defensive rebounding percentage and facing the NBA’s best offensive rebounding unit held up nicely. New York only grabbed eight. It didn’t matter, as the Knicks hit 53.7% of their field goals, 47.8% of their threes, and attempted 26 free throws. Indiana also forced 14 turnovers to no avail. Will they clamp down in round two?

Key Injuries – Benedict Mathurin (out)

Knicks Escape Game One

Meanwhile, the Knicks reached a postseason-high 121 points in game one, which was enough to overcome a nine-point deficit in the fourth quarter. Jalen Brunson had 40+ points for the fourth consecutive game, and in the fifth, he finished with 39. Brunson has been instrumental for a team that is putting up 110.1 points per game in these playoffs. They managed to succeed on Monday with only eight offensive boards, whereas their postseason average is 13.6. New York grabbed 12.7 per game during the regular season. If that comes around, and their shooting stays hot, it’s hard to envision a future where the Knicks don’t advance. Even shorthanded, New York was seventh in offensive rating this season for a reason.

However, New York’s defense has been a bit shaky this postseason. A group that was second in scoring and ninth in defensive rating has allowed more points per game in the playoffs (109.4) than they did in the regular season (108.2). Still, this is a team that cleans up missed shots, hence the NBA’s sixth-best defensive rebounding percentage. The Knicks were also the sixth-best team at defending the rim, which will come in handy against a Pacers team that gets to the rim often. New York gave foes the fourth-fewest free throw attempts this year. Game one wasn’t great, but will the Knicks be sharper in game two? 

Key Injuries – Julius Randle (out); Bojan Bogdanovic (out); Mitchell Robinson (out)