The Pacers have stunned the Knicks 138-135 in New York and stolen homecourt advantage after winning Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals in Madison Square Garden. They forced overtime with a buzzer-beater and won the grueling matchup down the stretch due to their gritty defense.
Caitlin Clark, the Indiana Fever’s star guard, also witnessed the Pacers pull off a nearly impossible comeback as they forced overtime despite being down 14 in the final 2:30 of the game. She couldn’t believe what Tyrese Haliburton, Aaron Nesmith, and others pulled off in the final quarter. She went on X and made a bold claim about the Pacers at the beginning of overtime.
She said, “PACERS ARE THE GREATEST COMEBACK TEAM I’VE EVER SEEN”. Nesmith scored 19 of 30 points in the game the fourth quarter to lead the Pacers’ 14-point comeback in the final minutes of the game. The two star players of Indiana, Haliburton and Clark, seem to be close friends. Clark and Haliburton frequently attend each other’s games.
Fans Recall Kevin Durant, Reggie Miller As Pacers Pull Off Impossible Comeback
After Karl-Anthony Towns and OG Anunoby both missed crucial free throws down the stretch, the Pacers managed to get the final possession in the fourth quarter down by just two points. Haliburton brought the ball up after Anunoby made his second free throw, and when he saw Mitchell Robinson in the paint on his drive in, he tracked back to the three-point line to take the final shot.
TYRESE MF HALIBURTON NO WAY
— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) May 22, 2025
After the final shot bounced in (by some miracle), Haliburton tried to copy Reggie Miller’s iconic choke celebration, which he did on the Knicks in 1994. To his disbelief, his foot was touching the line, and hence, the three became a two, and what he believed to be the game-winning shot ended up being the shot that forced overtime.
This incident reminded fans online about Kevin Durant’s famous game-tying shot against the Bucks in 2021. In that shot as well, what Durant believed to be a three-point shot became a two-point shot because his foot was on the line.
KD seeing Hali foot on the line pic.twitter.com/bOB1E1vp7r
— Josiah Johnson (@KingJosiah54) May 22, 2025
“KD seeing Hali foot on the line”, wrote Josiah Johnson.
kevin durant is somewhere pointing at his tv screen pic.twitter.com/GBSHINlN72
— Dan Favale (@danfavale) May 22, 2025
“Kevin Durant is somewhere pointing at his TV screen”, wrote a fan on X.
In case you don’t know what everyone is referring to, here’s a look at Kevin Durant’s shot against the Bucks in 2021.
The Pacers have arguably had one of the all-time greatest runs in terms of pulling off comebacks in the Playoffs. In each series they played in these Playoffs, they pulled off noteworthy comebacks. They erased a 20-point first-half deficit against the Bucks in the first-round Game 5. They eclipsed that by erasing a seven-point difference in the final minute of the game.
In Game 2 of their series against the Cavaliers, the Pacers also erased a 20-point deficit to pull off a comeback. And now, they have pulled off yet another stunner comeback in the final three minutes of regular time. In a Playoff run where their first NBA championship is on the line, the Pacers have started very strongly and stolen home-court advantage from the Knicks.
