NEW YORK — TheIndiana Pacersare going home with a commanding2-0 leadin theNBA'sEastern Conference finals after again silencing the Madison Square Garden crowd with a114-109 victory over theNew York Knickson Friday. Pascal Siakam led the Pacers with 39 points as all five Indiana starters scored in double figures. The Knicks will try to become the second team in two years to lose the first two games at home in a seven-game series and come back to win it. These very Pacers pulled off the trick last season against the Knicks in the semifinal round and won Game 7 in New York to advance to the Eastern Conference finals. Game 3 is in Indianapolison Sunday (8 p.m. ET, TNT). MORE:2025 All-NBA team: MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Nikola Jokić headline first squad MORE:Celebs at Knicks vs. Pacers: Russell Wilson, Ciara at Game 2. See stars at Madison Square Garden The Pacers' power forward came out strong, scoring 16 of his 21 points in the first quarter to handle the majority of the scoring load as Indiana took an early 10-point lead. He finished with 39 points (15-of-22 FG, 3-of-5 3-point FG) and carried the load for the majority of the game until the rest of the starters picked it up in the second half. Siakam, who helped lead theToronto Raptorsto the 2019 NBA championship, set a playoff career high. Tyrese Hailburton, who only scored two points in the first half, finished with 14 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds. Just like the world championBoston Celticsdid in the semifinals, this time it was the Knicks' opportunity to squander the first two games at home and find themselves having to win four of the next five games to advance to their first NBA Finals since 1999. At the beginning of the fourth quarter, the reserves couldn't keep the game close, and Jalen Brunson, who had 36 points and 11 assists, couldn't bring the Knicks back. The Pacers' ability to get to the paint almost at will hurts the Knicks, especially in the fourth quarter. Indiana took advantage of New York's smaller guards, and when they weren't scoring with uncontested layups or getting fouled, the Pacers' outside shooters capitalized. The do-everything guard for the Knicks was a non-factor, getting into foul trouble early and never finding his groove. He finished with six points on 2-of-3 shooting and six rebounds in 28 minutes of action. The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast.Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Pascal Siakam smokes Knicks for playoff high; Josh Hart, defense AWOL
