The Indiana Pacers finally managed to secure their first win in the series against the New York Knicks. Players Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam did what was expected of them—performing in front of their home crowd, clad in yellow shirts. The third game of the NBA Eastern Conference semifinals, as planned, took place in Indianapolis. The first two meetings were won by the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden (121:117 and 130:121),
but this time Indiana emerged as the victors after a challenging battle towards the end. Haliburton and Siakam performed solidly, but the main hero was neither of them. Let’s meet Pacers’ point guard Andrew Nembhard, selected with the 31st overall pick in the 2022 draft. In his debut season, the guard averaged 9.5 points and 4.5 assists, and in the 2023/2024 season, the numbers were slightly down to 9.2 points and 4.1 assists. However, in this playoffs, he’s showing different stats—12.7 points and 4.7 assists. Quite impressive, considering his usage rate by the team—14.9. Ultimately,
it was Andrew who made the winning three-point shot from a Damian Lillard-like distance! Andrew himself had a tough game, making only two shots out of eight attempts. However, these hits came within the last two minutes of regulation. The most crucial and responsible moment. Tyrese Haliburton, after this three-pointer, was extremely surprised—especially since he made the forced but effective pass. Haliburton scored 35 points with seven assists and six three-pointers, thus becoming the fifth player in NBA postseason history to score 30+ points and hit 6+ three-pointers in two consecutive games, a feat previously accomplished by Stephen Curry, Donovan Mitchell, James Harden, and Damian Lillard.
Tyrese was supported by power forward Pascal Siakam, who in 31 minutes on the court scored 26 points, grabbed seven rebounds, and provided one assist. Haliburton and Siakam are the first Indiana duo since 2013 to score 25+ points each in a playoff game, a milestone last achieved by Paul George and David West. Siakam, who joined the hosts in January, previously played for the Toronto Raptors, with whom he won the league championship in 2019. Center Myles Turner helped the Pacers with 21 points, 10 rebounds, and three blocks. The fourth game of the series will take place tomorrow, May 12th, at 22:30 MSK.