The Knicks are .500 — 17-17 — through 34 games, almost the halfway point of the season. Relive a most enjoyable win, featuring Julius Randle owning a fellow All-Star, RJ Barrett coming up big, Nerlens Noel playing a marathon second half, and Frank Ntilikina securing the W with a game-winning steal.

This was the most fun Knicks game of the season.

More fun than drubbing the reigning MVP, more fun than destroying Boston, and more fun than Austin Rivers’ sudden combustion to beat the Jazz.

The first quarter was awful, and the Knicks played so poorly to start, Tom Thibodeau called a timeout after just over two minutes of play. Despite some nice play from Derrick Rose plus a thunderous put-back and a nice three from RJ Barrett, matters went from bad to worse for the Knicks — Taj Gibson sprained his ankle and was later ruled out for the rest of the game. The first quarter was so bad, Clyde called it “the Knicks’ worst nightmare.” He was not exaggerating, as the Knicks entered the second period down nine.

The Pacers continued their domination through the start of the second quarter — at the seven minute mark, Indiana had stretched their lead to 16. Over the next five-plus minutes, Indiana would score just four points, as the Knicks suddenly came to life — combining their vexing defense with a flurry of offensive activity. Rose hit a floater, Julius Randle got a put-back, then Immanuel Quickley combined a good steal with a semi-transition three. Reggie Bullock nailed a pull-up from 18, which was followed by what may be Randle’s best moment as a Knick — the All-Star forward grabbed a bad pass from Myles Turner, and ran the floor for an exhilarating fast break dunk. 

A pair of RJ threes sandwiched another Randle dunk, and it seemed like the Knicks were going to head to half down just one, until Rose deflected a Sabonis pass with three seconds left and nailed a 29-foot jump shot with a sixth of a second remaining. After playing terribly for much of the first half, the Knicks led at the half, 54-52.

The third quarter was a back-and-forth affair that saw the Knicks’ starters do all the heavy lifting — not a single bench player scored a point, and Bullock was the only Knicks starter to play less than 10 minutes in the quarter. Randle played strong, shooting 5-6, while Indiana’s All-Star forward Domantas Sabonis shot just 2-5. Rose, too, played well in the third, with six assists, zero turnovers, and six points. Barrett, however, was very quiet, going 1-5 for five points.

The Knicks entered the final period up three on the Pacers, and extended their lead to nine in the first two minutes of the quarter. Indiana began putting together their comeback after that, however, and were aided by the Knicks seeming inability to hold onto the ball — Quickley traveled, then got called for an offensive foul. I’d be remiss to not mention that the offensive foul call was awful — Knick killer TJ McConnell had the flop of the century, flying into the air after Quickley slowed down slightly.

Edmond Sumner then had a hell of an alley-oop, nearly jumping over Alec Burks. Randle responded with a layup, but then lost the ball and got called for a loose ball foul, which was, again, a terrible call. The next possession down, Rose lost the ball, and the next possession after that, Bullock missed a three as the shot clock expired. With around 4:30 left, Barrett subbed in with the Knicks down five — that would prove to be the critical juncture of the game.

RJ hit a tough three, then guarded Aaron Holiday well on Holiday’s drive, and followed that up with an and-one floater. The shot tied the game 98-98, and RJ’s free throw gave the Knicks a one-point lead. The next possession, RJ found Randle in the corner for three, and then after a Randle steal, RJ made a layup. Almost entirely on his own, RJ Barrett turned a five-point deficit into a six-point lead.

With two minutes remaining, McConnell got an easy layup past Rose. Bullock lost the ball, and Sumner hit a three. Randle, with a minute and a half left, and the Knicks up one, missed a fadeaway. Then Noel, who played every minute of the second half, got a steal and got fouled. Nerlens, a career 65% free throw shooter, swished both to put the Knicks up three with a minute left. Turner missed a three, Randle rebounded and was quickly fouled. Randle made both, and the Knicks were up five with 30 seconds left.

And then, all at once, everything seemed to go wrong for New York. Sabonis, out of an urgent desperation, threw up a 28-foot shot with 25 seconds remaining. And he banked it in. The following Knicks possession, Barrett was fouled and missed both free throws. Now, with fifteen seconds remaining, an absolute eternity, the Pacers, perhaps the most despicable Knicks rival, were down just two.

After RJ bricked those free throws, it felt almost inevitable the Pacers were going to win — the same Pacers that won when Ewing missed the finger roll in 1995, the same team that Reggie Miller played for, and the very same team that Roy Hibbert played for when he stuffed Carmelo Anthony at the rim in the last playoff game the Knicks have played in.

And now, this whiny, annoying, 7-foot-tall Hans Gruber-looking ass had banked in a three and the Pacers were on the verge of beating the Knicks yet again. But then, Frank Ntilikina happened. Rose just barely got a hand on a lazy pass from Sabonis, and Ntilikina, who was only in position because Bullock instructed him to switch onto Justin Holiday, got the ball, using every inch of his 7-foot wingspan to beat Holiday out for the ball. The Pacers fouled Ntilikina, and that should’ve been it, except Rose inexplicably fouled McConnell. Thankfully, Rose fouled McConnell just before he got his half-court heave up, and it was just two free throws. Though, with the two made free throws by Frank, the Knick lead was four, and with just 0.4 seconds left on the clock, no matter of free throws could have saved the Pacers.

Notes

• I think this was a very important win for the Knicks. They’re sitting, as of Feb. 27, 2021, at the fifth seed in the conference, tied in record with Toronto, the four seed, and half a game ahead of both Boston and Miami, who went to the Eastern Conference Finals last season. They improved to .500 against a likely playoff team. The last time the Knicks were .500 after 34 games was the last time they had an All-Star forward. That 2017-18 Knick team was three games through a four-game losing streak, and wouldn’t spend a single day above .500 after Dec. 31. I have a strong feeling this team will fare better.

• The officiating tonight was horrendous. Indiana was called for 17 personal fouls, five of which were called in the last minute and a half, whereas New York was called for 22 personals. Quickley had the phantom offensive foul, while Rose had the foul on McConnell at the end of the game which was not a foul. Pacers head coach Nate Bjorkgren ran past half court to protest a call he didn’t like, and I can guarantee you the zebras wouldn’t let Thibs get that far before ejecting him. Bjorkgren wasn’t ejected, and instead, just got T’ed up. But the Knicks took care of business, even playing 8-on-5.

• Noel deserves massive praise for his play in this game. After Gibson went down, the Knicks were without a backup center. Noel stepped up, playing every minute of the second half, and playing very well at that, even guarding Sabonis down the stretch. His clutch steal and free throws were massive for the Knicks late, but Noel was absolutely fantastic throughout the entire game.

• Weird game for RJ Barrett. He had his usual Pacer-killer statline tonight — 24 points on 59.8% True Shooting, including 4-6 from downtown, and seven rebounds — but his play seemed inconsistent, and his night was capped off by bricking both free throws at the very end of the game. It’s important to not get too caught up in the minutiae with a young player’s development — it’s more important that he’s getting reps. Plus, I seem to remember a certain first-time All-Star missing his fare share of clutch free throws last season.

• Randle started out very slow scoring-wise (eight points on 40% TS in the first half), but finished very strong (20 points on 77.6% TS in the second). His steal and fast break dunk might be my favorite Julius Randle play, ever. He paired his 28 points with 10 rebounds and six assists, and some excellent defense on Sabonis. He’s our All-Star. Remember not to take him for granted.

• TJ McConnell killed the Knicks because, well, I guess that’s what TJ McConnell does. Seventeen points on 61.2% TS and 12 assists for one of the most annoying basketball players. Rose really struggled with guarding McConnell all night, especially down the stretch. If only the Knicks had an elite point-of-attack defender.

• OAKAAK Doug McDermott was fantastic — 20 points on 73.3% TS. He played just 22 minutes, however, and was notably absent for the fourth quarter. Justin Holiday, also OAKAAK, had a good game as well — 13 points on 70.7% TS. McDermott and Holiday are among my favorite former Knicks of the past few seasons. Kyle O’Quinn, another favorite, would always find McDermott on the cut when they played for the Knicks.

• Quickley was less electric than last night, but still good. His highlight of the night was a fantastic 4-point play. It was even less foul-baity than his normal foul bait shots, too. Zero assists tonight, however. Again, game-to-game results aren’t important for young players, but whether or not Quickley can add more creation for others is a big thing for him moving forward as a player.

• Ntilikina was once again given an opportunity, and once again made the most of his minutes, even if the box score was quiet. His one made field goal was a contested three that I guarantee Frank neither takes nor makes in his previous seasons. His steal iced the game for the Knicks, and I firmly believe that no other Knick gets to that ball before McConnell and Holiday.

The Knicks are .500 and are tied with the fourth seed in the East! Home court advantage is within sight for the Knicks, and we’re almost to the All-Star Break! The Knicks have a better record than Chicago, Boston, Indiana, and Miami, and the wins are driven by their draft picks and a 26-year-old All-Star. Enjoy it!