The New York Knicks fell in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals to the Indiana Pacers despite holding a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter. The Knicks choked at the end of the game, ultimately falling short in overtime.
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NBA teams were 0-970 in postseason history over the last 27 years when trailing by 14+ points with under 2:50 left in regulation. The Pacers became the first team to make this happen, and it left the New York fans stunned.
In the aftermath of this situation, longtime NBA personality and Knicks fan Stephen A. Smith had some thoughts. Smith said that he was "sick to his stomach" after the game.
"I'm not putting it on one person, it was a collective collapse of epic proportions, it was horrible, okay. This is bad, this is very bad...if the New York Knicks lose this series, this is the game that we're all gonna look at. This is historic, we have seen nobody in NBA history come back from such a deficit...but it happened last night at the Garden, I'm sick to my stomach over it."
This loss could stick with the Knicks for the remainder of the series, but this team has fought back before. New York has Game 2 being played in Madison Square Garden, giving them another chance to earn a win in front of their home fans.
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If they can tie the series at 1-1 before they head out on the road for Games 3 and 4, New York may be able to salvage things. But if they drop Game 2 to the Pacers, things could get very ugly for this Knicks team.
Indiana has been one of the more impressive teams during the postseason, consistently coming back from large deficits in games. The Pacers never give up, no matter what the scoreboard says, and it has seen them very tremendous success.
New York will need to do a better job of closing games out against this Pacers team if they want to win the series. Another choke-job from the Knicks, and the Pacers could mentally take over this matchup.
Game 2 between these two teams is scheduled for Friday, May 22, at 8 p.m. ET.
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This story was originally published May 22, 2025 at 12:19 PM.