History Not in Knicks' Favor After Game 2 Loss

The New York Knicks are finding themselves in the worst-case scenario after dropping Game 2 to the Indiana Pacers at Madison Square Garden.

The 114-109 defeat gives the Pacers a chance to sweep the Knicks with two wins at home inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse over the next two games.

Only 7.3 percent of teams have ever overcome a 2-0 deficit in the playoffs, which doesn't bode well for New York's chances of surviving the series.

In Conference Finals history, just six of 82 teams have ever won a series after dropping the first two games. The 1971 Washington Bullets were the first to do it, beating the defending champion Knicks to reach the NBA Finals that year, only to lose to the Milwaukee Bucks in a four-game sweep.

The Bullets were in a league of their own until the 1993 Chicago Bulls accomplished the feat, also coming against the Knicks. They went on to win their third consecutive NBA Finals against the Phoenix Suns, which led to Michael Jordan announcing his first retirement.

In 2007, the Cleveland Cavaliers went on a four-game win streak after losing the first two games to the Detroit Pistons in LeBron James' first ECF appearance. They proceeded to lose to the San Antonio Spurs in four games in the NBA Finals.

The 2012 Oklahoma City Thunder also came back down 0-2, but lost to James' Miami Heat in five games in the NBA Finals.

LeBron also saw his 2018 Cavaliers beat the Boston Celtics after trailing by two games, but were later swept by the dynastic Golden State Warriors. Then, the following year, the Toronto Raptors were able to beat the Milwaukee Bucks and went on to beat the Warriors.

So, the Knicks aren't out, but the odds are stacked against them now more than ever.