The Indiana Pacers cheered on with 31 points from Pascal Siakam and 21-point doubles from Tyrese Haliburton, defeating the New York Knicks 125-108 on Saturday, reaching the NBA Finals for the first time since 2000.

The Pacers broke a close game in the third quarter and maintained pressure in the fourth quarter to win the best finals of the seven-game East to reach two games.

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They entered the championship series for the second time in franchise history, and will chase their first title when the finals open Thursday in Oklahoma City.

New York eliminated the elimination with a dominant defensive performance in Game 5 but could not send the series into a decisive Game 7.

Instead, the Knicks won two NBA titles in 1970 and 1973 and are still looking for their first finals trip since 1999.

Star Forward Siakam was named the most valuable player in the Eastern Conference Finals, and the Knicks expanded the series with a leading defensive effort after a disappointing outing in Game 5.

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"After a bad game, we wanted to rebound," Siakam said. "And I have 100% faith in my teammates. Whenever we are disappointed, we always find a way - we did it tonight."

Haliburton shocked the early shooting efforts and ended the game with 21 points and 13 assists as seven Pacers scored in double figures.

These included Obi Toppin's bench and backup Thomas Bryant's 11 shots as the Pacers reserved a 38-20 victory.

“I’m very proud of this group,” Halliburton said. “As a group, we all performed well in our last games. We want to respond.

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"We did a great job," he added. "I'm proud of this group and now I have nothing to say."

OG Anunoby led the Knicks with 24 points. Karl-Anthony Towns added 22 points and 14 rebounds, while Jalen Brunson scored 19 points and distributed seven assists.

But a fast-paced first quarter of Indiana came in, with five lead changes with a one-point lead and never lagging behind, causing 18 turnovers in New York and resulting in 34 Pacers points.

Haliburton scored no points in the first quarter, heating up with eight points in the second quarter, including a steal from teammate Andrew Nembhard - one of New York's 10 turnovers in the first half.

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Nembhard raised another steal from Brunson and fed Siakam a layup to raise Indiana's lead to six points before drilling a rim in the last half of the first half to cut the Knicks' deficit to 58-54 at the break.

The Pacers opened the third quarter with a 9-0 run and raised their lead to 15 points, or 78-63, pushing their lead to the lead in Nembhard and Bryant’s back-to-back three-pointers, sending the Gainbridge Fieldhouse crowd into the madness.

The Knicks quickly reduced the deficit to seven, with only the Pacers exiting again, leading 92-77 to the fourth quarter.

Halliburton had only 10 points in the first three quarters, adding 11 points in the last frame as the Pacers returned home.

bb/sev