Knicks hold Haliburton scoreless in blowout win over Pacers
The New York Knicks held All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton scoreless and demolished the Indiana Pacers 123-98 on Friday to avenge their 2024 postseason elimination.
It was only the third scoreless game of Haliburton's four-year NBA career.
The 24-year-old went 0-for-8 from the field and 0-for-7 from deep while dishing out five assists.
"I was just bad, bro," Haliburton said after the loss, according to ESPN's Tim Bontemps. "It happens. I gotta be better defensively,"
Haliburton added: "I know we gotta be better and there's probably better ways to approach what we're doing offensively. The ball might be sticking in my hands and some other guy's hands a little bit too much, but we're gonna be fine. We just gotta make shots."
It was the second straight game in which Haliburton struggled. The 2024 Olympic gold medalist went 1-for-9 from three and scored just 15 points in the Pacers' season-opening game against the Detroit Pistons.
But Haliburton wasn't the only one missing shots Friday night. The Pacers were frigid from deep, shooting just 3-of-30 from downtown. Indiana was one of the most electric offensive squads in the league last season, averaging 123.3 points per game and only once scoring below 100 points.
Indiana had a one-point deficit after the opening frame. New York proceeded to outscore the Pacers 70-40 over the next two quarters.
"A lot of the first quarter was encouraging. ... Then we allowed transgressions on offense to affect us defensively. And then it snowballed a bit," Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle told reporters postgame, according to Scott Agness of Fieldhouse Files.
Bennedict Mathurin led the way for the Pacers, scoring 20 points off the bench.
The Knicks, meanwhile, bounced back from their opening-night loss to the Boston Celtics. Jalen Brunson dropped 26 points, while Karl-Anthony Towns added 21 points and 15 rebounds in his first game at Madison Square Garden this season.
New York will host the 2-0 Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday.
The Pacers will face the Philadelphia 76ers, who are winless and dealing with numerous injuries, on Sunday.