If you had Miles McBride tied for a team-high in points at the end of the first half of Game 6, you might want to play the lottery.
But that’s exactly what happened on Friday night for the Knicks against the Pacers.
McBride notched 15 points, tied with Donte DiVincenzo, for the most on the Knicks as they trailed 61-51 after two quarters at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
McBride was excellent from the field, shooting 6 of 8 overall and an impeccable 3-for-3 from 3-point land.
His brilliance came as Jalen Brunson struggled mightily by hitting just 2 of his 13 shots in a dismal five-point first half.
Miles McBride #2 of the New York Knicks reaches in on Pascal Siakam #43 of the Indiana Pacers during the first quarter. Jason Szenes / New York Post
Brunson missed 11 straight shots to end the first two quarters.
Before the game, McBride, who stepped up in a big way with his defense against Tyrese Haliburton in Game 5, said he needed to kick his game up a notch in the potential clincher.
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“I think I’ve got to go up a level,” McBride said, per The Post’s Stefan Bondy. “We do as a whole team. I think if we do things the same way, we might not get the same result if you don’t go up a level.”
New York Knicks guard Miles McBride (2) shoots between Indiana Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton, left, and center Myles Turner (33) during the first half of Game 6 in an NBA basketball second-round playoff series. APMcBride and the Knicks held Haliburton to eight points in the first half Friday.
New York will need more of that — and likely a better Brunson — if it wants to close out the series in Indiana.
