Tyrese Haliburton, Pacers Beat Knicks in G1 After Epic Comeback, Stun Fans with OT Win

The Indiana Pacers refuse to quit.

They have played the role of comeback heroes throughout the playoffs, and Wednesday was no different in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals at Madison Square Garden. Not even a 116-102 deficit with fewer than four minutes remaining in regulation was enough to stop them from forcing overtime with a 23-9 run and then defeating the New York Knicks 138-135.

It seemed as if Tyrese Haliburton won it at the buzzer with a shot from deep, but his toe was on the line.

Still, the visitors carried that momentum into the extra period and emerged with the win with late baskets from Obi Toppin and Andrew Nembhard. Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns also missed threes that could have forced double-overtime as the Pacers completed the stunning win.

They are now favorites to win the series at -168, per FanDuel Sportsbook.

While Haliburton played the role of hero with the late shot and key plays in overtime on his way to 31 points and 11 assists, he wouldn't have been in position to hit that buzzer beater without Aaron Nesmith's scorching hot three-point shooting down the stretch.

Nesmith finished with 30 points behind 8-of-9 shooting from three-point range. Six of those three-pointers came in the final five minutes of regulation in a stretch that took the air out of the crowd.

It also set the stage for the Pacers to make history:

Frankly, it was more of the same for Indiana considering it closed the Milwaukee Bucks out in the first round with a dramatic comeback and overtime win before Haliburton hit a winning three-pointer in Game 2 of the team's second-round series against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Social media reacted to yet another shocking effort from the comeback kids:

This one stings for the Knicks for a number of reasons, not the least of which they wasted incredible performances from Brunson (43 points and five assists) and Towns (35 points and 12 rebounds). Towns carried the home team for extended stretches in the fourth quarter when Brunson was on the bench with five fouls, which seemed to be enough to win.

However, Indiana waited until Brunson returned for the closing stretch to unleash its incredible run.

The ending stands out, but it was clear from the start that the Pacers weren't intimidated by the atmosphere in the same stadium they eliminated the Knicks in Game 7 of last year's second round. They drilled their first nine shots from the field to start the contest in a first half that featured a breathless pace.

That pace opened the door for runs from both teams, and New York answered Indiana's initial spurt to take a 69-62 halftime lead. Brunson was unstoppable attacking the basket, Towns caught fire from deep and Mikal Bridges provided important secondary scoring inside the arc.

The Pacers refused to go away, though, with a scoring burst from Haliburton in the second quarter before Pascal Siakam finally found his offensive footing in the third. They needed that scoring from Siakam to stay within fighting distance because Haliburton could only do so much by himself.

Still, New York finally created some separation in the fourth in unexpected fashion with Brunson on the bench thanks in large part to Towns.

But no lead is safe against the Pacers in these playoffs, as they proved once again to take the series lead heading into Friday's Game 2.