'No need to panic': Pacers flop but vow to respond

NEW YORK -- The Indiana Pacers played their worst violative crippled of the postseason successful Thursday night's 111-94 nonaccomplishment to the New York Knicks, but contempt missing a accidental to adjacent retired the series, prima defender Tyrese Haliburton emphasized determination was "no request to panic."

"We're a resilient group," Haliburton said aft the game. "We ever privation to respond erstwhile things don't spell good aft a crippled similar that. We recognize what the stakes are. ... We're fine. There's nary request to panic oregon anything."

The Pacers inactive pb the bid 3-2, with Game 6 connected Saturday nighttime successful Indianapolis.

Indiana ne'er led successful Game 5 arsenic New York pulled disconnected a wire-to-wire triumph with its play connected the line. Meanwhile, the Pacers' discourtesy ne'er got started. Their starting 5 combined for conscionable 37 points, the second-fewest by a squad successful a crippled this postseason, and arsenic a squad the Pacers had 20 turnovers, their astir successful a crippled during these playoffs.

Thursday's nonaccomplishment besides marked the archetypal clip this postseason that the Pacers were held to nether 100 points.

"To commencement the game, we conscionable didn't person the close level of force, the close level of cognition indispensable successful this environment," Pacers manager Rick Carlisle said. "It was a atrocious start; we ne'er had a pb successful the game. There were a multitude of things that were going wrong. There were stretches successful the crippled wherever we got a small spot of traction, but ne'er enough."

Bennedict Mathurin scored a team-high 23 points disconnected the bench, and Pascal Siakam led the starters successful scoring with 15. But Obi Toppin, who had 11 points disconnected the bench, was the lone different Pacers subordinate successful treble figures.

After putting up a historical stat enactment successful Game 4, Haliburton struggled to enactment progressive connected discourtesy Thursday night, scoring 8 points connected 2-of-7 shooting with six assists. His 7 changeable attempts were his fewest successful immoderate crippled this postseason, and helium scored oregon assisted connected 24% (23 of 94) of the Pacers' points, according to ESPN Research. In Games 1-4, Haliburton scored oregon assisted connected 41% of his team's points.

"I got to beryllium better, and I'll beryllium amended successful Game 6," Haliburton said. "We got to beryllium amended arsenic a group. Our gait has to beryllium better. That starts with me. I got to beryllium amended there. As a radical we've shown that we tin person immoderate occurrence this playoffs. This was a unsmooth showing for america tonight. So we'll ticker the film, spot wherever we tin get amended and beryllium great."

The Pacers admit the Knicks established themselves arsenic the much assertive squad successful Game 5, bu they person prided themselves connected responding aft losses this postseason. Forward Aaron Nesmith did not mince words erstwhile asked however the Pacers get their strength backmost for Game 6.

"You get punched successful the look similar this," helium said. "Sometimes you got to suffer to get better. That's what happened today."

Knowing they were returning location with a 3-2 bid pb was a large crushed wherefore the Pacers were not discouraged contempt Thursday's loss. Indiana has not dropped back-to-back games since March, and Siakam said helium was looking guardant to a accidental to bounce backmost astatine home.

"You're going to person atrocious games," Siakam said. "This is the NBA, and there's going to beryllium times wherever a squad is going to play hard. In fact, they're going to bushed you.

"It is conscionable each astir us, man. It's ever been america against the world, and I don't expect it to change. ... We are 3-2 successful a bid and we person an accidental to spell backmost location and amusement what we're made of."