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NEW YORK -- Tyrese Haliburton tied the game with a long jumper that bounced high off the back of the rim and in as time expired in regulation, then the Indiana Pacers finished off their stunning rally by beating the New York Knicks 138-135 on Wednesday night in Game 1 of the NBA Eastern Conference finals.
The Knicks led by 14 points with less than three minutes remaining in regulation, but Aaron Nesmith brought the Pacers back with a flurry of late three-pointers.
"Remarkable resilience by our guys, hanging in, finding a way to get the thing to overtime," Pacers Coach Rick Carlisle. "But it's a long series, we're not going to get too excited about this. We've got things to clean up, they've got things to clean up. Game 2 is going to be another war."
Haliburton then hoped he had won it with another. With the Pacers down two and time running down, he started to lose control of his dribble, regained it and dribbled back out toward the three-point line. He fired up his jumper and when it finally fell in, he raced toward the sideline and made a choke signal to the crowd, like Pacers Hall of Famer Reggie Miller did to Spike Lee while leading a Pacers comeback in a playoff game in 1994.
Replay confirmed that Haliburton's toe was on the line and it was a two-pointer that tied it at 125-125. Andrew Nembhard eventually made the go-ahead basket with 26 seconds remaining in OT.
Game 2 is Friday night at Madison Square Garden.
"It was crazy out there, and the environment, it never disappoints here," Carlisle said. "At this time of year you want to go into the most hostile, the most difficult environments, and test your mettle."
Haliburton had 31 points and 11 assists. Nesmith finished with 30 points, going 8 for 9 from three-point range. Pascal Siakam scored 17 points, Nembhard tallied 15 and Myles Turner put up 14 to round out the Pacers' starters.
"We got a resilient group, it was just one stop at a time," Siakam said. "We know any time we can do it, we just got to keep going ... We always feel like we're in the game, man, no matter what's happening out there we always have that belief."
It was a thrilling start to the ninth playoff matchup between these fierce rivals from the 1990s -- but a deflating finish for the Knicks in their first Eastern Conference finals game since 2000.
Jalen Brunson scored 43 points and Karl-Anthony Towns had 35 points and 12 rebounds. But the Knicks couldn't protect the big lead they built while Brunson was on the bench in foul trouble in the fourth quarter and had a collapse unlike any other in the postseason.
"They're tough, tough team. It's going to be a battle every single night, so we just got to keep fighting and keep being us," Siakam said. "They're a resilient team also, and they have super talented guys. It's going to be a long series."
Teams leading by at least 14 points in the final 2:45 of the fourth quarter had been 994-0 since detailed play-by-play began being kept in 1997-98.
The Pacers beat the Knicks in Game 7 of the East semifinals at Madison Square Garden last year, routing a team that had been decimated by injuries.
This was an entirely different way to win, with the Pacers looking all but out of the game after the Knicks' 14-0 run with Brunson on the bench pushed New York's two-point lead to 108-92.
"It's a 48-minute game. We always say, 'Pacer basketball is 48 minutes,' and tonight it was 53 minutes," Carlisle said.
Even after Nesmith started to get hot, the Knicks seemed safe when Brunson's three-pointer made it 119-105 with 2:51 to go. But Nesmith would later hit consecutive three-pointers and both free throws when the Knicks fouled him intentionally so he couldn't try to tie it with another, giving Indiana the chance to tie on Haliburton's shot.
New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) reacts during the third quarter of Game 1 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final against the Indiana Pacers, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) reacts during the third quarter of Game 1 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final against the Indiana Pacers, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
Indiana Pacers forward Obi Toppin (1) misses a dunk against the New York Knicks during the second quarter of Game 1 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
Indiana Pacers forward Obi Toppin (1) misses a dunk against the New York Knicks during the second quarter of Game 1 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
Indiana Pacers forward Obi Toppin (1) dunks the ball against New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) in overtime of Game 1 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
Indiana Pacers forward Obi Toppin (1) dunks the ball against New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) in overtime of Game 1 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) is fouled while shooting by Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) during the second quarter of Game 1 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) is fouled while shooting by Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) during the second quarter of Game 1 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final, Wednesday, May 21, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)