Knicks' Jalen Brunson Delights NBA Fans With Injury, Keys G2 Win vs. Haliburton, Pacers

Somehow, someway the New York Knicks keep winning.

Injury fears were the prevailing theme for the Eastern Conference's No. 2 seed in the second game of their second-round series against the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday, but they still walked away with a 130-121 win at Madison Square Garden.

Jalen Brunson dealt with one painful right foot and spent much of the first half in the locker room before coming back with 29 points and five assists. OG Anunoby was excluded for the fourth quarter with a hamstring injury, but did much of the heavy lifting early on with 28 points and four rebounds.

The team is already without Julius Randle, Mitchell Robinson and Bojan Bogdanović, but that doesn't seem to matter because of Donte DiVincenzo (28 points, six rebounds and four assists behind 6 of 12 from three-point range) and Josh Hart (19 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists) also dominated.

Brunson and the Knicks received rave reviews for their efforts:

While there was some controversy at the end of Game 1 when the Knicks capitalized on an incorrect kicked-ball violation in the final minute, much of the result was due to Brunson clearly outplaying Haliburton in a battle of stars.

These two were once again in the spotlight at the start of Wednesday's contest as Haliburton filled the stat sheet while also catching fire from three-point range to give the visitors a double-digit lead at halftime.

On the other hand, Brunson suffered the injury and spent much of the first half in the locker room. New York's initial lead quickly evaporated and the focus turned to the bigger picture of Brunson's health.

After all, he wore them in the postseason, scoring 40 or more points in each of the previous four games. The Knicks' hopes of a long playoff run rest firmly on his shoulders, which is why the The crowd roared when Brunson returned in the second half.

He didn't just return, he brought the crowd to life by leading a 21-4 run to take the lead. While Brunson provided the emotional lift on the floor, it was DiVincenzo and Anunoby who did much of the scoring, while Hart was responsible for a little bit of everything.

However, it was only a matter of time before Brunson found his footing again, and he extended the lead to eight with a goal of his own in the fourth period.

However, the Knicks were without Anunoby in the fourth quarter, which put even more pressure on Brunson and others. Of course, they were up to the challenge, as DiVincenzo hit crucial three-pointers and Brunson scored in the crucial minute to give New York a 2-0 lead before the series moves to Indiana for Game 3 on Friday.