Indiana Pacers vs New York Knicks match preview

NBA BASKETBALL: 12BET odds Indiana Pacers vs New York Knicks 4/4 7AM GMT+8







The Indiana Pacers are chasing home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. The New York Knicksjust hope to be joining them in the postseason as they begin a tough stretch in their schedule withoutJeremy Lin or Amare Stoudemire.Indiana will try to snap a three-game losing streak against New York on Tuesday night at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.The Pacers (31-21) have won six of nine to pull within one-half game of Orlando for third place in the Eastern Conference, with Atlantic Division-leading Boston currently holding the No. 4 spot. Indiana is coming off a 104-102 overtime win at Houston on Sunday.Danny Granger hit two free throws with 15.7 seconds left in the extra session and had a block at the buzzer, finishing with 32 points.







New York will have a much different lineup than the one that defeated Indiana 115-100 and 102-88 in a home-and-home set March 16 and 17.Lin and Stoudemire hit the injured list last week, with each player missing the last four games. The point guard underwent surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee Monday and could miss six weeks.Stoudemire has a bulging disk in his back, expected to keep him out two to four weeks.Still, New York (27-26) has won three of four without its second- and third-leading scorers and nine of 11 overall, including a 91-75 victory over Cleveland on Saturday.The Knicks shot 39.5 percent, but took advantage of 20 Cavaliers turnovers, scoring 28 points.J.R. Smith scored 20 points and Carmelo Anthony added 19.Tyson Chandler had 14 points and 12 rebounds.