Jalen Brunson Says Knicks 'Were Desperate' Facing Elimination in Game 5 Win vs. Pacers

Jalen Brunson says it took desperation for the New York Knicks to keep their postseason hopes alive with a Game 5 win over the Indiana Pacers on Thursday night in Madison Square Garden.

Brunson scored a game-high 32 points to help the Knicks cut the Pacers' Eastern Conference Finals lead to 3-2.

"I mean, we were desperate," Brunson said on ESPN's SportsCenter after the Knicks' 111-94 win (0:15 mark.) "Obviously, we knew it was win or be done, win or go home. So, we just gave everything we had and just found a way."

The 2025 Eastern Conference Finals will now head back to Indianapolis for Game 6.

When asked about his mentality going into another must-win game, Brunson answered, "We've got to be focused, now. We can't look ahead. We can't look too far. We've just got to be focused on that first quarter, and how we play, and go from there."

Unlike the first four games of the series, which were all decided by ten or fewer points, the Knicks pulled out to an early lead and never let the Pacers catch up.

The home team held a 20-point lead by the third quarter thanks in large part to Brunson, who shot 12-for-18 from the field, and Karl-Anthony Towns, who posted 24 points and 13 rebounds in the win.

Brunson and Towns are the first teammates to each top 20 points through five games of a conference finals series since Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal in 2002, per SNY.

Tyrese Haliburton, who led the Pacers with 32 points in Game 4 to put the Knicks on the brink of elimination, was meanwhile held to eight points on 2-for-7 shooting in the Game 5 loss.

"I just feel like we just played better," Brunson said when asked on the court what the Knicks had changed about their defensive strategy heading into the potential elimination game. "We played better, we played to our standards.

"You've got to give them a lot of credit for the way they play, but we played Knicks basketball tonight."

Head coach Tom Thibodeau said after the win that Brunson and Towns "set the tone for the game" in the first quarter, while Deuce McBride credited Brunson with leading the Knicks by example in the win.

The Knicks will look for another big night from Brunson as New York looks to force Game 7 with a win on the road. Game 6 is set to tip off at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET.