Knicks at Pacers
The Indiana Pacers continue to display a dominance on the defensive end of the floor that has vaulted them toward the top of the Eastern Conference. They look to continue their stingy ways and pick up a seventh consecutive victory when the New York Knicks pay a visit Sunday evening.
Opponents are averaging just 96 points against Indiana during the six-game run and the Philadelphia 76ers were outscored 64-42 in the second half in falling to the Pacers 113-101 on Friday. "We continue to fight, continue to be there for one another," forward Thaddeus Young told reporters after a 26-point, 10-rebound effort. "I think the unity in this locker room is like no other." The Knicks will be wrapping up a three-game road trip and enter with a bit of momentum after a comeback 126-124 overtime win at Charlotte on Friday. New York erased a 21-point deficit to snap a five-game slide despite playing down the stretch with just eight active players.
TV: 5 p.m. ET, MSG (New York), FS Indiana
ABOUT THE KNICKS (9-21): New York dressed 10 players at Charlotte and then lost center Mitchell Robinson and guard Frank Ntilikina to sprained ankles in the first and third quarters, respectively. Emmanuel Mudiay picked up the slack with a career-high 34 points to go along with eight assists while little-used forward Luke Kornet broke out for 13 points, six rebounds, three blocks and two steals off the bench. "When his number is called, he is ready and his hasn't been called much this year, but he's kept himself ready and mentally ready," coach David Fizdale told reporters of Kornet, recalled from the G-League in November. "When I threw him out there, he handled business."
ABOUT THE PACERS (19-10): Star guard Victor Oladipo is still shaking off some rust from an 11-game absence and is averaging 13 points while shooting 10-for-27 in two games since returning. He and fellow starting guard Darren Collison combined for 19 assists against just three turnovers at Philadelphia while guard Cory Joseph came off the bench to provide 14 points and four assists in 25 minutes. Domantas Sabonis notched his second straight double-double and team-leading 12th with 14 points and a career high-tying 16 boards.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. G Allonzo Trier (hamstring), G Trey Burke (knee) and G Damyean Dotson (shoulder) were all inactive for New York on Friday.
2. Knicks SF Kevin Knox is averaging 21.7 points over his last three games while making 10-of-20 3-pointers.
3. Sabonis had 30 points to help the Pacers win at New York in the first meeting, despite a season-high 37 points from Knicks SG Tim Hardaway Jr.