Haliburton: Pacers wanted to 'throw the first punch' in Game 2

Tyrese Haliburton feels the Indiana Pacers executed their game plan to perfection in their 114-109 Game 2 victory over the New York Knicks.

"I think after you take a game like Game 1, you understand that they're gonna come into the game probably a little frustrated," Haliburton said. "They probably don't feel like they should've lost Game 1, feel like they gave it away. So we knew they were gonna amp up the physicality and play with some pace.

"I think the biggest thing for us as a group was don't wait for them to throw the first punch, we'll throw the first punch and roll from there, and I thought we did a good job of that."

The Pacers won both Games 1 and 2 at Madison Square Garden and now return home with a stranglehold on the Eastern Conference finals.

Indiana coach Rick Carlisle was impressed with how his team, particularly the reserves, played down the stretch Friday to take a 2-0 series lead.

"We're at Madison Square Garden, which is one of the ultimate road environments, with a tie game going into the fourth quarter," Carlisle said, per SNY. "That's all you can ask for. Now we just gotta try and execute as well as we can. Our bench did a really good job. ... We're a team that needs everybody, so that's how we gotta play."

Haliburton had an off shooting night but dished out 11 assists. Pascal Siakam picked up the scoring slack, erupting for a playoff career-high 39 points.

Despite the considerable advantage, Carlisle wants his team to remain level-headed as the series moves to Indiana.

"There are a lot of traps here. You cannot assume going home is gonna be easier, it never is," Carlisle said. "Each game as you ascend in a playoff series becomes harder, and New York's got an amazing fighting spirit. We're gonna have to keep concentrating on our process, making it hard on them, trying to keep tempo in the game."

Game 3 will take place Sunday.