Jalen Brunson returned from a first-half injury to spark a second-half comeback on Wednesday night for the host New York Knicks, who beat the Indiana Pacers 130-121 in Game 2 of an Eastern Conference semifinal series.
The second-seeded Knicks lead the sixth-seeded Pacers 2-0 in the best-of-seven series. Game 3 is scheduled for Friday night in Indianapolis.
Brunson missed the final 15:32 of the first half with a right foot injury. The Knicks led 24-17 when Brunson exited, but they entered the second half down 73-63.
Brunson drew a standing ovation from the sellout crowd at Madison Square Garden after leading the Knicks out for warmups prior to the third quarter. He played all 24 second-half minutes and had 24 of his team-high 29 points — along with four assists, two steals and one rebound — over the final two quarters as New York outscored the Pacers 67-48.
“Lot of toughness,” Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said of Brunson. “That’s sort of, I think, the makeup — we know that’s his makeup, but that’s also the makeup of our team.
“The mental-toughness piece is so important — the ability to get through things, to be at your best when your best is needed even when you may not be feeling your best. And that’s who he is. Great leader.”
New York’s OG Anunoby scored 28 points before leaving with 3:27 left in the third quarter due to a left hamstring injury.