It's Both 2-0 in the NBA East and West Finals - Can Indiana and Oklahoma Still be Stopped?
By Teodoro Medina Reynoso
PhilBoxing.com
Sat, 24 May 2025
It is both 2-0 in the Eastern and Western Conference Finals, the only difference is that the host team in one failed to hold homecourt advantage while the other had no problem.
For the second straight game, the Indiana Pacers broke the hearts of loyal New York Knicks fans by steadfastly holding on to the lead in pulling off a 104-99 victory early today at the Madison Square Garden arena. The series therefore will be shifting to Indianapolis with the Pacers holding a 2-0 advantage.
Meanwhile, in the West, the Oklahoma City Thunder swept their two home games against the Minnesota Timberwolves, scoring a 118-103 win yesterday after a 114-88 blow out in the opener. The series shifts to Minnesota with the Timberwolves staring at a 0-2 deficit and the near impossible task of stopping recently awarded season Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous Alexander.
The second New York vs Indiana game was in contrast to the opening game where Indiana trailed by as many as 17 points before forcing an overtime and proceeding to outlast the Knicks 138-135 on the torrid three points shooting of Tyrese Haliburton and Aaron Nesmith.
This time it was Indiana which was on the driver's seat for majority of the period with Paskal Siakam leading the offense with 39 points although Haliburton and Nesmith still had their moments despite the Knicks shifting focused defense.
Once again, Knicks ace scorers Jalen Brunson and Karl Anthony Towns saw their efforts went for naught in a maze of missed shots in the dying seconds of the hard fought game. Also wasted were the efforts by players as Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby who chipped in their usual points production as well as Mitchell Robinson and Josh Hart who did their best in trying to disrupt the Pacers' offense.
The game was decided in the final half a minute after Brunson scored on a drive on to make it 100-97. But after assisting Hart to make it 100-99, Brunson fouled Nesmith in the inbound and Nesmith made it 102-99. Brunson missed on attempt to tie the game and Bridges fouled Myles Turner who made it 104-99 with barely four ticks left.
The author Teodoro Medina Reynoso is a veteran boxing radio talk show host living in the Philippines. He can be reached at teddyreynoso@yahoo.com and by phone 09215309477.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Teodoro Medina Reynoso.
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