NEW YORK -- Pascal Siakam scored a playoff career-high 39 points, and the Indiana Pacers beat the New York Knicks 114-109 on Friday night for a 2-0 lead in the NBA Eastern Conference finals.
Myles Turner added 16 points while Tyrese Haliburton had 14 points, 11 assists and 8 rebounds for the Pacers, who head home halfway to their second trip to the NBA Finals. They lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in 2000 in their only shot at the title.
Game 3 is Sunday in Indiana, though the Pacers might prefer to keep it right where it is. They have won six straight road games since falling at Milwaukee in Game 3 of the first round.
"Just take it one game at a time, know it's 2-0 but still a long series," Knicks forward Mikal Bridges said. "Just got to find different ways to advance."
Jalen Brunson had 36 points and 11 assists for the Knicks, who need a quick turnaround or their first appearance in the conference finals in 25 years will be a brief one. They defended much better after their crushing collapse in a 138-135 overtime loss in Game 1, but couldn't find enough scoring to come back after a bad start to the fourth quarter.
"Much tighter game in a lot of ways -- difficult, physical," Pacers Coach Rick Carlisle said. "Thought our guys held their composure very well. ... We kept our poise.
"It's day three of 13 days. No one is getting ahead of themselves. There's a lot of work to do."
Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns each had 20 points and seven rebounds for the Knicks, but Towns played just 28 minutes as Coach Tom Thibodeau went longer with backup Mitchell Robinson, a much better defender who grabbed nine rebounds.
"We got in a hole, and the group that was in there gave us a chance," Thibodeau said. "We were just riding them, searching for a way to win."
It was tied at 81-81 after three quarters, before the Pacers opened the fourth with a 13-4 run to move ahead 94-85 on Siakam's three-pointer with 9:17 remaining. They would quickly push the margin back to around there every time the Knicks got any momentum, and it was 110-100 after another basket by Siakam with 2:45 to play.
"Going into the fourth quarter, it's a tie ballgame and we've just got to make better plays," Thibodeau said. "More winning plays."
Added Carlisle, "I thought the third quarter was a very good quarter for us. ... We're at Madison Square Garden, which is one of the ultimate road environments, with a tie game going into the fourth quarter. That's all you can ask for."
The Knicks scored nine straight to make it 110-109 on Josh Hart's basket with 14 seconds to go. Aaron Nesmith made two free throws for the Pacers, Brunson was well off on a three-point attempt and Turner finished it out with two free throws.
The 50th playoff meeting between the rivals -- the Pacers lead 28-22, all since 1993 -- more closely resembled their defensive battles of the 1990s than the shootout of two nights earlier. The Knicks led that one by 14 with 2:45 to play before the Pacers caught them on Haliburton's jumper as time expired and won it in OT.
This time, Indiana raced to a 19-9 lead, but the Knicks quickly caught them when Robinson and Miles McBride entered and the game remained within a single-digit margin nearly the entire rest of the night.
"Got to talk to each other off the jump, be physical off the jump," Bridges said. "Think maybe we were just playing a little too soft at the beginning of the halves."
Indiana Pacers guard T.J. McConnell (9) passes the ball against New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) and forward Mikal Bridges (25) during the fourth quarter of Game 2 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final, Friday, May 23, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
Indiana Pacers guard T.J. McConnell (9) passes the ball against New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) and forward Mikal Bridges (25) during the fourth quarter of Game 2 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final, Friday, May 23, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) drives against Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard (2) during the third quarter of Game 2 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final, Friday, May 23, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) drives against Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard (2) during the third quarter of Game 2 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final, Friday, May 23, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
Indiana Pacers forward Aaron Nesmith (23) drives against New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) during the fourth quarter of Game 2 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final, Friday, May 23, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
Indiana Pacers forward Aaron Nesmith (23) drives against New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) during the fourth quarter of Game 2 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final, Friday, May 23, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) goes up for a shot against Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard (2) during the fourth quarter of Game 2 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final, Friday, May 23, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)
New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (23) goes up for a shot against Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard (2) during the fourth quarter of Game 2 of the NBA basketball Eastern Conference final, Friday, May 23, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)