Knicks vs. Pacers Game Six Prediction: Pacers Hoping to Force Game Seven

The Indiana Pacers are on the brink of elimination in a 3-2 hole as they prepare for a home Game Six against the New York Knicks on Friday.

The Pacers annihilated the Knicks in Game Four, the second of two home games, and are 5-0 in their building in the playoffs. They lost the momentum when they dropped Game Five, however, and will have to prove their inexperience does not outweigh their mental resolve.

The Knicks are dealing with a slew of injuries, including those to Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson, OG Anunoby, and Bojan Bogdanovic. Jalen Brunson is also playing through a foot problem, yet the team still finds itself one win away from its first Eastern Conference Finals appearance since 1999-2000.

Here, we will analyze the betting odds and share our favorite pick for Knicks vs. Pacers Game Six.

Knicks vs. Pacers Game Six Betting Odds for Friday, May 17

The Knicks are 49-41-3 (54.4 percent) against the spread and 14-14-1 (50 percent) ATS as a road underdog. They covered in three of five games in the series and are 6-5 ATS in the playoffs.

The Pacers are 49-42-3 (53.9 percent) ATS and 17-16-1 (51.5 percent) ATS as a home favorite. They covered in four of seven regular and postseason matchups with the Knicks and are 5-6 ATS in the postseason.

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Knicks vs. Pacers Game Six Prediction

New York Knicks Preview

The Knicks are a relentless group. They survived numerous injuries that would cause a normal team to crumble and find themselves 48 minutes of clean basketball away from cementing their most successful season as a franchise in 25 years.

Tom Thibodeau made the call to insert Miles McBride into the starting lineup in place of Precious Achiuwa, who had filled in for Anunoby following his injury. The young McBride responded by going for 17 points and four assists and posted a +/- of +26 in 40 minutes as the Knicks won by 30 points. 

McBride’s speed and aggression on the perimeter were a perfect counter to the Pacers’ spacing and rapid pace. As a result, no Pacers guard scored more than Tyrese Haluburton’s 13 points in Game Five.

Game Five was the first time the Knicks held the Pacers under 111 points in the series, and they held them to 91. That was reminiscent of the defensive efficiency the Knicks had during the regular season and that they lost once the postseason began.

Jalen Brunson is coming off of his best game since his foot injury. He dropped 44 points and seven dimes to finish with a game-high +31, a standard he’ll be counted on to reach again after he averaged just 22 points in Indy in the series.

Bet on New York Knicks at BetMGM 

Indiana Pacers Preview

The Pacers have their backs up against a wall. They showed courage to battle back and tie the series at 2-2 but lost all of the momentum not just with the Game Five loss, but the way in which it occurred, and how lifeless they looked.

It’s not unfair to say that Haliburton almost has sole control of how his team does. The Pacers are 5-1 when he takes at least 15 field goals and 1-4 when he doesn’t.

Haliburton’s biggest impediment is his lack of aggression on the pick-and-roll. He usually looks to make the pass to a teammate even if he can take a shot that likely has just as high of a likelihood in resulting in points for his team.

The Pacers are only 14th of 16 playoff teams in defensive rating. They’ve also been thoroughly outrebounded by the Knicks in the series, even with their piling injuries.

Indy found success in Games Three and Four by keeping the pedal to the metal and shooting efficiently from three-point land. Their best performance was in Game Five, when they went 56.8 percent from the field and 45.2 percent from deep.

Although the Knicks have actually been solid shooting the three throughout the playoffs, the Pacers can put themselves in the best position to win if they can take advantage of being in front of their home crowd and do the same.

Bet on Indiana Pacers at BetMGM 

Knicks vs. Pacers Game Six Betting Pick

It’s somewhat remarkable the Knicks have the series lead despite their injuries and now that they’re six-point underdogs for Game Six.

While the Pacers looked like a totally different team in their building, we still find it hard to believe the Knicks will get blown out again. Their toughness and intangibles seem to make it so they always have an answer to adversity, as recently demonstrated in Game Five.

We aren’t promising a Knicks win, but we like them on the spread. Keep an eye on McBride to see if he can have the same impact that he did his last time on the court.

• Knicks vs. Pacers Game Six pick: Knicks +6 (-108) at BetMGM 

How to Watch Knicks vs. Pacers Game Six

• When: Friday, May 17 @ 8:30 p.m. ET

• Where: Gainbridge Fieldhouse

• TV: ESPN

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