After another 20-point comeback, the Knicks look to even up the Eastern Conference Finals with a Game 4 win at Gainbridge Fieldhouse Tuesday night.
Indiana still leads the series 2-1, but has to be kicking themselves after letting a 20-point lead slip away and going 5-25 from three-point range. It was the third time this postseason that the Knicks have rallied from 20 points down to win. The 100 points were the fewest scored by Indiana in the playoffs.
The Pacers also lost star wing Aaron Nesmith with a rolled ankle, and he will be a game-time decision for Game 4. My status is ‘fired up’ for my Game 4 pick.
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Knicks at Pacers Game 4 Odds
The winning team has covered all three games in this series. The last two games have ticked the under. Indiana is favored tonight by a bucket. The line has held steady. The total is 220.5.
Indiana is 9-4 in the playoffs against the spread and 7-6 over/under. New York has gone 9-6 against the spread in the playoffs and 6-8-1 over/under. 25 of the Knicks last 41 games have gone under, and the Knicks have won 25 of their last 37 road games.
A key NBA betting trend: The Pacers have won seven games in a row when coming off a loss. They’ve also led at halftime in their last eight playoff home games against the Knicks. The Pacers are 4-2 at home in the playoffs. Remember, they won the first two games on the road against top seed Cleveland, lost Game 3, then came back to win the next two.
Knicks at Pacers Game 4 Preview
There are players on both teams who are simply unstoppable, and in Game 3, it was Karl-Anthony Towns’ turn. The Knicks big man scored 20 of his 24 points to lead the comeback and a 106-100 win.
At this level of the NBA, no one can really stop the best players; all you can do is try to make it harder for them. The Wolves can’t stop SGA from getting in the lane. The Pacers can’t stop Jalen Brunson, and the Knicks can’t stop Tyrese Haliburton. It makes the games exciting.
Nesmith would be a huge loss if he can’t go for the Pacers. He’s officially questionable for Game 4 after rolling his ankle. He’s one of the guys Haliburton looks for when the Knicks make things difficult on him. He went 8-9 from deep in Game 1 to carry the Pacers to that OT win. With him out, the Pacers have a void on offense and defense.
Knicks at Pacers Game 4 Pick
My instinct is that Nesmith will probably give it a go, and the Pacers will try to feed him early. Nothing makes an injury feel better than a couple of threes going swish.
The Knicks now know what the path is to a victory in this series. It’s defense. They have to get stops and get rebounds. The Knicks also finally got some contributions from their bench in Game 3.
But I like the Pacers still to win and cover tonight. I can’t ignore the fact that this is what happened in the Cavaliers series. The Pacers had a letdown in Game 3, then bounced back with a big win in Game 4. Indiana won’t shoot 5-25 from three again like they did in Game 3. I am betting they win a close one.
The Pick: Pacers -2.5 (-108 at DraftKings)