New York at Indiana

The New York Knicks staved off elimination in Game Five at home with a 10-point win. Looking back, it is easy to see what went wrong. Both teams defended very well, as they have all series. If it wasn't bad enough that the Pacers shot poorly from the field, they lost the game at the foul line. They got to the line 33 times to the Knicks 17, but connected on a woeful 57.6%. They also turned the ball over 19 times, so if they just hit 75% of their free throws and weren't so reckless with the ball, they would be heading to Miami for Game One of the Eastern Championships. Carmelo Anthony will ultimately kill the Knicks. Defenses change in the postseason, and he is a selfish player that is going to get his points. And, despite being double-teamed, he will refuse to pass. While he is getting his 28 points per game, he takes 1/3 of the teams shots at less than 40% shooting, and averages 1.5 assists per game in this series. Indiana is 5-0 ATS at home in the playoffs, outscoring their five opponents by nearly 16 ppg, and no one has come within 11 of them. Take the Pacers. I also like the UNDER here. The deeper this series goes, the harder it has become to score for both teams. Over the last three games, they have averaged just 162.6 points per game. The Knicks are getting nothing from Jason Kidd, as he is 0-17 from the field in his last nine games. The Knicks have averaged just 77 ppg in the two games played here, and Melo has yet to make a field goal in the fourth quarter here, when the Pacers really turn it up defensively. Make the play on Indiana and take the UNDER.