Tyrese Haliburton, Pascal Siakam go ghost in closeout opportunity against
Closeout games are when NBA stars are required one of the most. It’s why teams pay them the big bucks and in this case, it’s why the Pacers have Pascal Siakam and Tyrese Haliburton as the group’s highest-paid players.
With a shot at clinching an NBA Finals berth in Thursday’s Eastern Conference Game 5, they were nearly invisible while Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns led the way to force a Video game 6.
After having memorable Madison Square Garden performances– Siakam’s playoff-best Video game 2 and Haliburton’s clutch Video game 1 heroics– the duo were suppressed by the Knicks in a 111-94 defeat. They could not get loose like previous games and integrated for 23 points on 7-of-20 shooting on Thursday night.
“Rough night for me,” Haliburton admitted postgame. “I got ta be much better setting the tone, getting downhill. I feel like I didn’t do a terrific job of that, however I’ll see the film. There were some different things they did defensively.”
Haliburton got a taste of his own medication Thursday as he faced full-court pressure mostly from Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby. The star, who averaged 24.3 points going into Video game 5, didn’t even make his first shot till the 9:40 mark of the third quarter. He was quickly reminded of the Knicks’ pressure 16 seconds after when he attempted to drive through the paint for a layup but had the shot swatted out of bounds by Mitchell Robinson.
The third-quarter bucket was simply one of 2 makes on a night he registered his poorest getaway of the series: 8 points, 6 helps and two rebounds.
For Siakam, his last MSG outing included a 39-point efficiency, a playoff career-high for the nine-year veteran. He stopped working to even get close to that same success Thursday after logging 15 points, 6 rebounds and five assists.
The rotations were much better. More notably, the Pacers couldn’t get the frequent success on pick-and-roll actions against the Knicks like they have actually had all series. And the offending possessions by Tom Thibodeau’s squad caused makes, prohibiting the Pacers to go out on the break regularly.
Siakam’s explanation after the loss was simple: “They played more difficult than us.”
On the other side, Brunson and Towns delivered blow after blow in a game they led by as numerous as 22 points. There was no late comeback magic for the Pacers.
KAT and the captain wouldn’t enable it.
Brunson was hot from the start, scoring 12 points within the first 9 minutes of Video game 5. He cooled down then scored 5 straight right after halftime before converting a four-point play at the 2:56 mark to induce a deafening cheer at The Garden. They all added to a 32-point outing on 12-of-18 shooting.
Towns’ first barrage came as Thibodeau placed him with reserves in the second quarter. He recorded 13 of his 24 points in the period, proving a banged-up knee wouldn’t slow him down after entering the matchup as a game-time choice.
Towns later served a pair of daggers in the last minutes of the fourth.
First, he blew by Siakam on the boundary and completed over Bennedict Mathurin for an and-1 surface at the 2:44 mark. He went back for more 30 seconds later and scored on a dunk that put the Knicks’ lead at 18. He went 10-of-20 while logging 13 rebounds and 3 helps.
Lastly, the MSG crowd saw an Eastern Conference Finals success as the Pacers stars struggled.
There was no choke gestures by Haliburton. No groans after momentum-killing Siakam makes. But there was a standing ovation at the end that resulted in “Knicks in seven” chants.
The Garden crowd now hopes they can see their team one more time for Video game 7 following another do-or-die match in Indiana on Saturday.
Haliburton and his team, though, have no doubt they can prevent a Video game 7 while holding a 3-2 series lead.
“It’s one game,” Haliburton stated of the Game 5 stinker. “I believe their crowd’s excited as they ought to be. There’s a lot of energy in the structure. I have the most self-confidence in myself and my group to play to our capability in Video game 6. So I don’t think there’s any need to panic by any means.”
Initially Published: May 29, 2025 at 11:03 PM EDT