The Indiana Pacers are now just one win away from finally making it to the NBA Finals.
In a sensational offensive display, the Indiana Pacers secured Game 4 with a 130-121 victory in the Eastern Conference Finals against the New York Knicks.
After a brutal choke job in Game 3, the Pacers made sure to redeem themselves. They are now in command to return to the NBA Finals for the first time since 2000.
The Pacers leaned on the brilliance of Tyrese Haliburton, as the Pacers superstar took over and put on a show for the return of his father in attending Indiana games. He had a superb 32-point, 15-assist, and 12-rebound triple-double.
Pascal Siakam provided 30 points while Aaron Nesmith added 16 points. But there was another player who caught Rick Carlisle’s eye.
The Pacers would not have been able to win Game 4 against the Knicks if not for the solid step-up performance from Ben Mathurin.
Mathurin was huge off the bench, tallying 20 points, two rebounds, and two assists across 12 productive minutes. He went 5-8 from the field and sank 10 of his 11 foul shots.
In his postgame presser, head coach Rick Carlisle made sure to praise the 22-year-old who served as the team’s game-changer for Game 4.
“Proud of Ben Mathurin,” Carlisle said. “The guy stayed ready, came in yesterday, worked, got shooting in, got simulated game shots.
“We’ve just been encouraging him to stay ready, we need him. The playoffs are a different animal. Tonight he was great, gave us a huge lift and some timely buckets.
“Really proud of him.”
After being solid in the first two series for the Pacers against both the Milwaukee Bucks and the Cleveland Cavaliers, Mathurin suddenly took a backseat in the East Finals against the Knicks.
He played underwhelming basketball as the team’s sixth man, averaging just 3.7 points with 25 percent shooting for the first three games.
The Pacers could not ask for a more perfect time for Mathurin to respond, with his scoring boost placing them one step closer to the title stage.
“Obviously, every night is not going to be the same, but it’s about whatever I can do to help my team win,” Mathurin said.
“Tonight, I was pretty good to help my team win, and I’m just looking forward to doing whatever it takes.”
He added: “As much as I love New York, I don’t want to go back over there. We just gotta do the right things to finish it off there. It would be amazing to finish Game 5 in New York, then come back here, get some rest, and get ready for the Finals.”
