NEW YORK — Julius Randle showed why he was an All-Star selection over Domantas Sabonis.
In a head-to-head physical battle between the two powerful forwards, Randle won the box score battle and the game, 110-107, pushing the Knicks (17-17) to .500 for the first time since January.
Randle finished with 28 points and 10 boards in 42 minutes, but was also subbed out for defensive purposes on the biggest possession of the game. With the Pacers trailing by 2 with the ball, Sabonis’ pass was deflected by Derrick Rose and fell in Frank Ntilikina’s hands with 4.7 seconds remaining.
Ntilikina was fouled and hit both free throws to seal the victory.
The Pacers and Knicks are among seven teams in the East who entered Saturday separated by one game or fewer, stacked between the fourth and 10th spots. The victory lifted New York to a tie for fourth with the Raptors. Still, it’s too early to look at the standings.
“The important thing is to do the things necessary to win and to not lose sight of what we have to do in order to win. And that’s where I want our focus to be,” Thibodeau said. “There’s no game that’s more important than the other one. They all count the same. And in the end, you may make it by a game, miss it by a game, so everything does matter. And that’s where our focus needs to be.”
Sabonis scored just 15 points in 36 minutes with five turnovers. He was left off the All-Star team behind Randle, but was announced as a replacement Friday for the injured Kevin Durant.
A first-quarter ankle injury to Taj Gibson, who played only four minutes, complicated the rotation and forced Nerlens Noel into heavy action. Noel finished with a season-high 41 minutes, and had enough energy for a steal and clutch free throws with 1:16 remaining to give New York a 3-point edge. Thibodeau resisted playing small.
Point guard Elfrid Payton missed his second straight game with a strained hamstring, giving Rose the starting spot and Ntilikina another shot at the rotation.
Rose responded with 17 points and 11 assists in 38 minutes.
The start was poor for the Knicks, who forced Thibodeau to call a timeout after just two minutes and an 8-0 deficit. The Knicks trailed by as many as 16 in the second quarter but ended with a flurry, as Rose’s 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer gave them their first lead of the game.
The Pacers were a little shorthanded without their point guard, Malcolm Brogdon, who sat with a sore knee.
