PACERS 138 - KNICKS 135
It will forever go down as the Choke 2.0, and all Knicks fans can hope for is that when this best-of-seven Eastern Conference Finals is over, the results are similar to the original from 30-years ago.
The Knicks not only blew Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals to their rivals the Indiana Pacers, they did so in unforgettably historic fashion, watching a 17-point lead with 6:26 to go disappear into nothing. In fact, New York held a 14-point lead with 2:45 setting an NBA record where the Knicks became the first team in 994 attempts to blow such a large lead with so little time remaining.
Want an even more bizarre stat? The Knicks are the first team EVER to lose a game with a nine point lead with less than a minute to go. The record was 1434-0. Now its 1434-1.
Great job Knicks.
So when Tyrese Halliburton brought the ball up court, somehow managed to avoid a double-dribble foul, as he spun around to set up what he thought would be the game winner when the shot he took bounced up in the air, and fell through the hoop leading to his mimicking Reggie Miller's choke gesture, it was a fitting moment.
Because the Knicks had chocked perhaps the biggest lead in their history in the biggest spot possible. And even with that, New York still had a chance because Halliburton had his foot on the arch, making his supposed three-ball actually a two-point play, meaning we had overtime.
And even in overtime, the Knicks couldn't get past themselves. A ball tipped off the hands of Jalen Brunson leading to a turnover, and the Pacers rolled from there. Even ex-Knick Obi Toppin got into the action nailing a couple of shots in OT to help seal the deal for Indiana.
The Knicks now must put this one far behind them and focus in on Game 2. They can't dwell on what happened in Game 1, it's history now. They can turn the page, and write their own story, and perhaps like their predecessors in 1994, make the "choke" game just a blip on the radar screen, and still find a way to win the series.
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