In what will become one of the greatest playoff games in recent years, the Indiana Pacers made an improbable comeback to defeat the New York Knicks in an instant classic, 138- 135.

With Aaron Nesmith catching fire, hitting six three-pointers in the final 4:55 of regulation, and Tyreese Haliburton channeling his inner Reggie Miller by making clutch plays, the Pacers rallied from a 113-98 deficit in the last five minutes to a stunned crowd at Madison Square Garden.

During the fourth-quarter rally, the Knicks led 125-123 with 7.3 seconds remaining. Haliburton took the ball full court and circled back past the 3-point line with a chance to win the game. His shot bounced almost to the ceiling off the rim and in just as the buzzer sounded.

Although Haliburton's shot wasn't a game-winner, the replay review revealed that his right toe was on the 3-point line. Instead,  he sent the game to overtime and applied the choke sign like Miller did 30 years ago.

After the game, Haliburton spoke with TNT about the choke sign, with Miller calling the game on the sidelines.

"Everyone was wanting me to do it," he said. "I was going to hold it for the right, but it felt appropriate."

For the Knicks, they lost despite two monster games from their All-Stars. Jalen Brunson scored 43 points, and Karl Anthony Towns scored  35 points and pulled down 12 rebounds.

Following the collapse, the Knicks admitted they took their foot off the gas when they thought their lead was safe.

“I mean, yeah, once he hits one, you have to be on high alert,” Brunson told reporters after the game. “I got to do a better job of finding him. I think he had one or two with me in the vicinity that started it off. That’s not a way to close a game.”

Game 2 is scheduled for Friday night at Madison Square Garden.