INDIANA @ NEW YORK (NYK -5, 220)
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PACERS VS. KNICKS 5/8/24
On Monday night, the "Villanova Three" made a lot of big shots for the New York Knicks. The Knicks and Pacers experienced exactly what they anticipated from Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. When New York hosts sixth-seeded Indiana tonight, the team hopes to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
In Game 1, the Knicks prevailed 121-117 on Monday. With 40.1 seconds remaining and just 12 seconds after Pacers guard Aaron Nesmith was mistakenly called for a kicked ball violation, Donte DiVincenzo gave New York the lead for good.
DiVincenzo, Josh Hart, and Jalen Brunson, who were all members of Villanova's 2016 national championship winning squad, put up 92 points combined for the Knicks. Along with Michael Jordan, Bernard King, and Jerry West, Brunson became the fourth player in NBA history to score at least 40 points in four consecutive playoff games. He finished with a game-high 43 points.
DiVincenzo, Brunson, and Hart contributed 34 of the 39 points the Knicks scored in the fourth quarter. With 10:28 remaining, New York was down 94-85. Over the next seven minutes, the three players scored 24 points to pull the Knicks ahead.
The Pacers bemoaned their inability to finish off the Knicks, but they also admitted that they were unhappy with the officiating in the closing minutes. In the second half, New York's field goal percentage was 65.0 percent (26-of-40), 63.6 percent (7-of-11) coming from three-point range. During the first 24 minutes of play, the Knicks shot just 42.9 percent (18-of-42) from the field, making only 4-of-12 from beyond the arc.
After the game, Zach Zarba, the officiating crew chief, stated that Aaron Nesmith's kicked ball call was wrong. Replays revealed that Brunson's pass glanced off Nesmith's hand on the way to the Pacers' Andrew Nembhard.
With 12.1 seconds remaining, DiVincenzo drew a moving screen against Myles Turner, helping to seal the victory. As Turner set a pick, DiVincenzo was defending Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton. The call was contested by the Pacers but upheld.
Both teams are trending Over. The first game of the series went way Over the total of 217. That makes it 5 of the last 6 Overs for Indiana. For New York, 16 of the last 19 games have seen the total go Over. Tonight’s total opened at a much higher 221.5 and has dropped to 220 already.
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FREE PICK: JALEN BRUNSON OVER 45.5 PTS + ASTS
We’re going back to the well that keeps on giving. Brunson has been an absolute beast in the playoffs. He’s scored 40-plus in four straight games and is averaging over 8 assists in those four. He’s cleared this prop in five straight and 10 of his last 14 games. He also cleared this prop in two of the three regular season games against Indiana. Going back to April 4, Brunson has gone Over his PTS + ASTS prop 12 times in 14 games. Indiana ranked 27th in the NBA in scoring defense. The Pacers will make some adjustments, but Brunson will find a way to go Over this prop once again.
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