By PETER SBLENDORIO New York Daily News
Share this story

NEW YORK — The Knicks know what’s on the line.

But so do the Indiana Pacers.

ADVERTISING

That’s why the Knicks aren’t getting too high, nor are the Pacers getting too low, as the Eastern Conference finals shift back to Indianapolis for Game 6 on Saturday night.

“We have no more room for error,” Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns said. “It’s our backs against the wall, and every game is do or die. So, if we don’t bring that energy, we don’t bring that execution, our season will be over.”

Thursday night’s 111-94 win in Game 5 at Madison Square Garden kept the Knicks’ season alive, but they are still in a 3-2 hole in the best-of-seven series.

The odds remain against them — only 16.1% of teams have overcome a 3-2 deficit in NBA playoff history — but the Knicks are coming off their best all-around performance of the series.

The Knicks limited Indiana’s high-powered offense to a series-low 94 points on just 40.5% shooting, including 33.3% on 3-point attempts.

They ramped up their pressure, with Mikal Bridges repeatedly meeting Pacers point guard Tyrese Haliburton in the backcourt and disrupting the flow of Indiana’s uptempo offense.

And the Knicks’ deeper rotation — namely Landry Shamet, who delivered multiple defensive highlights Thursday — has paid dividends, particularly in wins in Games 3 and 5.

Now it’s the Pacers’ turn to adjust.

They are confident they will.

“I’ll be better in Game 6,” said Haliburton, who managed only eight points on 2-of-7 shooting with six assists in Game 5 after erupting for 32 points, 12 rebounds and 15 assists without a turnover in Indiana’s Game 4 win.

“We’ve got to be better as a group. Our pace has to be better, and that starts with me. I’ve got to be better there. As a group, we’ve shown that we can have some success [in] this playoffs. It was a rough showing for us tonight, so we’ll watch the film, see where we can get better and be great.”

Jalen Brunson led the Knicks with 32 points, including 14 in the first quarter to set the tone and 16 in the third quarter to help keep the Pacers at arm’s length. Brunson shot 12 of 18 and added five assists and five rebounds.

That big-time performance came hours after Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle acknowledged that it’s “always hard” to win a closeout game.

“One team’s trying to move on and one team’s trying to stay alive,” Carlisle said during his pregame press conference. “It’s never not the hardest game.”

The Pacers will try again at home, where they are 1-1 in this series and 5-2 this postseason.

Indiana has not lost back-to-back games in these playoffs, continuing a streak that dates back to early March.