The New York Knicks had 17 turnovers in a losing effort to the Indiana Pacers in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
The Pacers took a 3-1 series lead with the 130-121 victory at home. They scored 20 points off of New York’s turnovers.
Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau said in his postgame press conference, “It was probably a compilation of things. You had the first quarter, it was problematic. That set the tone for the game, giving up 43 points and then we turn it over against them, particularly the live ball turnovers, you’re the fueling transition game.”
Josh Hart had 5 turnovers in 36 minutes off the bench, while Mikal Bridges and Jalen Brunson each had 3 turnovers. OG Anunoby and Karl-Anthony Towns had 2 each.
Tom Thibodeau Said the Knicks ‘Kept Digging Out of Holes’
Thibodeau said they “kept digging out of holes,” and could not fight to come back. He added, “Every game is going to be hard fought. Even in tonight’s game we still had a chance at the end. With the idea being, we say 48 minutes and you’re striving for that, knowing that it’s impossible to get to that.
He added, “You’re not going to get perfection, but strive for it. Fight for every possession, that matters. You don’t know which possession makes the difference between winning and losing in the end. But each possession is critical. And at the end you obviously want to make more winning plays than they do and we haven’t done that.”
The Knicks now return home for a Game 5 showdown at Madison Square Garden on Thursday, May 29, on the brink of elimination from the playoffs.
“The important thing is to reset, you’re not playing the series, you’re playing the game,” Thibodeau said, “What do we have to do to win that game? Each game is different. … You’ve got to reset and get ready for the next game.”
Jalen Brunson Told Reporters ‘We Need to Tighten the Screws’
At his postgame press conference, Jalen Brunson told reporters when asked about the turnovers, “As a team we just need to tighten the screws. … If they’re aggressive turnovers that would be different, but passive turnovers are just not us.
Karl-Anthony Towns added, “We’ve all got to be better. We’ve got to be better as a team. It’s unfortunate we all couldn’t find a way to win tonight.”
Josh Hart Said After the Loss to the Pacers That He Had ‘Stupid Turnovers’
Josh Hart told reporters after the loss, “We’ve got our backs against the wall, we’ve just got to make sure we fight out of it.”
On the turnovers, Hart said, “It’s tough to win against a team like that who turn those turnovers into points. I had like 4 or 5, just bad, just stupid turnovers that you can’t have. That leads to easy baskets, it leads to momentum. We have to be more careful with the ball, starting with myself.”
Mikal Bridges added, “We just kept fighting. They just came out with more fire. … It’s one game at a time. It’s part of the grind, part of the story. We’ve just got to learn from it, we’ve been part of a lot of different games, different series, it’s just gut check time.”
On turnovers, Bridges said, “I think I had 3 of them. Just bad turnovers. A team that plays that fast, you can’t give them transition looks like that.”
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