KAT fuels late charge to pull Knicks back from brink

INDIANAPOLIS -- The New York Knicks' play was connected the ropes arsenic they entered the last 4th of Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals Sunday night.

Through the archetypal 3 periods, the Indiana Pacers -- already up 2-0 successful the best-of-seven bid -- seemingly withstood the boost New York got from its starting lineup change. In that span, the Pacers had drawn 4 fouls connected All-NBA defender Jalen Brunson and held him to conscionable 4-for-14 shooting. The location assemblage was digging its heels in, enjoying a double-digit Indiana pb that got arsenic precocious arsenic 20 points successful the archetypal half.

But past Karl-Anthony Towns -- coming disconnected a highly scrutinized Game 2 showing and a brutal archetypal 3 quarters Sunday -- came to beingness and possibly saved the Knicks' campaign. He scored 20 points successful the fourth, matching Indiana's full output successful that 4th and doing conscionable capable until Brunson deed a tiebreaking 12-foot floater with 1:17 near to springiness New York a pb successful an eventual 106-100 win.

In coming backmost from a 20-point deficit, the Knicks avoided the dreaded 3-0 spread that nary NBA squad has ever managed to travel backmost from. Game 4 is Tuesday nighttime successful Indianapolis.

"I cognize you guys rotation your eyes erstwhile I accidental nary pb is safe, but nary pb is safe," said Knicks manager Tom Thibodeau, who has present presided implicit 3 wins this postseason successful which his squad trailed by astatine slightest 20 points. New York besides overcame a 14-point shortage successful its second-round bid with the defending champion Boston Celtics.

It would person been hard to blasted idiosyncratic for doubting the Knicks' quality to travel backmost this time.

Thibodeau's prime to spell to a antithetic starting lineup -- 1 with backup halfway Mitchell Robinson successful spot of helping Josh Hart -- wholly changed the look of the rotation, peculiarly erstwhile defender Miles McBride acquired 3 fouls and Brunson had 4 successful the archetypal half.

Towns, too, was saddled with aboriginal foul occupation and had conscionable 4 points aft 3 periods.

So arsenic the Knicks fell down and frustrations piled up, Thibodeau turned to a fistful of unheralded relation players -- guards Delon Wright and Landry Shamet among them -- to enactment successful the game.

"I deliberation astatine first, it benignant of took [our group] a small spot to fig retired what we were going to bash offensively. But that portion was afloat of guys who person been successful the league and who cognize however to play basketball," Hart said of players specified arsenic Shamet and Wright, who haven't played overmuch this postseason. "It's immense to person guys who enactment ready. It doesn't substance the situation. That's precisely wherefore you enactment ready."

The guards were coagulated defensively, clamping down a antecedently blistery Pacers discourtesy to commencement the fourth, portion Towns handled conscionable astir everything the Knicks needed connected offense.

He started New York's scoring successful that play with a 27-foot triple, followed that up with a layup connected the ensuing play, past grabbed a antiaircraft rebound and fired a agelong outlet walk to Wright for different lay-in.

Towns contributed to the Knicks' archetypal 17 points of the fourth, either by scoring oregon assisting baskets implicit the archetypal 4 minutes of the quarter.

"The crippled wasn't looking large for me. But for each of us, I conscionable wanted to bash immoderate it takes to assistance enactment america successful a presumption to win," said Towns, who finished with a game-high 24 points. He changeable 6-of-9 and pulled down 8 rebounds successful the last frame.

Because of however good his large antheral was playing, and due to the fact that Brunson was saddled with 5 fouls, Thibodeau kept Brunson, the Clutch Player of the Year, connected the seat until conscionable 1:37 remained successful the contest. It was connected the pursuing play, 20 seconds of crippled clip later, that Brunson deed the go-ahead basket.

"It's an affectional game, it's a agelong game. Things tin happen, things tin not spell your way. You tin easy clang out, oregon you tin respond the close way," Brunson said.