Box Score Breakdown for Monday, May 06, 2024
Knicks survive Pacers in Game 1
The Pacers overcame an early deficit to take a five-point lead into the final period, but the Knicks' 39-30 fourth-quarter edge, which included a 17-8 run over the final 4:04 of the contest, sealed the hard-fought victory. Both teams shot over 50.0 percent, but New York's 47.8 percent-38.5 percent three-point shooting advantage and their 40-32 win in the battle of the boards was critical to the win.
Myles Turner led the Pacers with 23 points, adding three assists, two rebounds, one steal and one block. Pascal Siakam delivered 19 points, six rebounds, five assists and one steal. T.J. McConnell furnished 18 points, three assists, one rebound and three steals. Aaron Nesmith and Obi Toppin generated matching 12-point, six-rebound, three-assist efforts with Toppin added one block. Andrew Nembhard totaled 11 points, four assists and two rebounds.
Jalen Brunson paced the Knicks with 43 points, complementing them with six rebounds, six assists and one block. Donte DiVincenzo tallied 25 points, three rebounds, one assist and two blocks. Josh Hart contributed a 24-point, 13-rebound double-double that included eight assists, three steals and one block. OG Anunoby and Isaiah Hartenstein posted 13 points and four assists apiece while pulling down nine and six rebounds, respectively.
The Timberwolves never relinquished the lead after the opening minute, riding a 33-15 second quarter to their victory. They led by at least 19 points for the closing 30 minutes, leading by 32 points at times. Minnesota shot 51 percent while holding Denver below 35 percent shooting. They also recorded 11 steals and 12 blocks while outscoring Denver in the paint, 52-34.
Karl-Anthony Towns led the T'Wolves with 27 points and 12 rebounds. Anthony Edwards totaled 27 points and seven assists. Kyle Anderson collected six points, nine rebounds and eight assists. Naz Reid and Nickeil Alexander-Walker led the bench with 14 points apiece.
Aaron Gordon led the Nuggets with 20 points and four rebounds. Nikola Jokic provided 16 points, 16 rebounds and eight assists. Jamal Murray missed 15 of his 18 shots to finish with eight points and 12 rebounds.
Game 3 will be in Minnesota on Friday. They lead this series 2-0.