New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson lookS on as Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) shoots during the first half of Game 7 in an NBA basketball second-round playoff series, Sunday, May 19, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
NEW YORK (AP) — When the Indiana Pacers compiled one of the best offensive seasons in NBA history, they were just getting warmed up.
For Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, they delivered something really spectacular.
Tyrese Haliburton scored 26 points and the Pacers set an NBA playoff record by shooting 67.1% from the field, beating the New York Knicks 130-109 on Sunday to advance to the Eastern Conference finals for the first time in 10 years.
“We have a historic offense obviously, but this guy got things rolling and everybody kind of just followed suit,” center Myles Turner said, pointing toward Haliburton.
“To do that on the road here in the Garden in Game 7 obviously is phenomenal, but I think this is what we’ve been doing all season long and we were able to show it on the biggest stage.”
The Pacers averaged 123.3 points during the regular season, sixth highest in league history, and set an NBA record by scoring 140 11 times.
They haven’t slowed down much in the playoffs. The Pacers made 29 of their 38 shots in the first half, a shooting percentage of 76.3% that was the highest in the postseason since 1997, when the NBA began keeping detailed play-by-play for all four quarters. They led 70-55 at that point and pulled away every time the Knicks tried to make a run in the second half.
“I just told our team when you win a Game 7 in Madison Square Garden, you’ve made history,” Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said.
The No. 6-seeded Pacers advanced to face top-seeded Boston in a series that begins Tuesday. Indiana last reached the conference finals in 2014, losing to Miami.
Jalen Brunson left in the second half with a broken left hand, one final injury for a Knicks team that was decimated by them.
They got OG Anunoby back Sunday after he missed the previous four games with a strained left hamstring, but he clearly wasn’t moving well and was taken out of the game after just five minutes.
Pascal Siakam and Andrew Nembhard each scored 20 points and Aaron Nesmith was 8 for 8 en route to his 19 for the Pacers.
Donte DiVincenzo made nine 3-pointers and scored 39 points for the Knicks, who were trying to reach the conference finals for the first time since 2000 but couldn’t overcome the losses of Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson and Bojan Bogdanovic, before losing Anunoby and finally Brunson.
