Mike Brown Disappointed in Knicks After Shocking Pacers Upset

The New York Knicks entered their home matchup with Indiana as heavy favorites. The Pacers own the worst road record in the Eastern Conference and sit near the bottom of the standings. But none of that mattered when the final buzzer sounded.

New York fell to Indiana 137-134 in overtime. Head coach Mike Brown didn't hold back when discussing his team's defense after the loss, per SNY.

"Tonight it wasn't there, at least not at the level that it has been," Brown said about the team's defense after the loss.

The Knicks let Indiana shoot 52 percent from the field, way off from the defensive standard they set during their recent winning streak. Brown said the Knicks never disrupted Indiana's rhythm from the opening tip. The Pacers built confidence early and rode it all the way through regulation and into overtime.

"[The Pacers] did a great job offensively. We tried to tighten up as the game went along, which we did, but it just wasn't quite enough to get it done. We had plenty of opportunity down the stretch to get it done, but when you give a team life from the beginning like we did, it's gonna be hard," he said.

Brown pointed to defensive positioning as the main problem. New York gave Indiana too much space, especially in the first half when the Pacers got comfortable.

"We didn't do a great job of getting into their airspace. We did do a little better job in the second half, but by then they were confident," he said.

Players See Same Problems: Comfort and Execution

Josh Hart saw what his coach saw. New York's early mistakes let Indiana find their rhythm.

"We started off the first couple of minutes, we started playing well, but then we let them get a little comfortable," Hart said.

The game turned into complete chaos. There were 39 lead changes, the most in the NBA this season, with neither team pulling away until overtime. Hart said execution became the problem when things slowed down late.

"Down the stretch, lack of execution. We gotta make sure at the end of the game, fourth quarter overtime is a little bit different. You can't just run fast, but you got to be able to slow it down and execute, and call plays and get guys in good situations, and areas to be successful. I feel like that's what we're kind of lacking," he said.

Jalen Brunson brought up physicality. Indiana's guards operated with way too much freedom all night. Andrew Nembhard and Pascal Siakam combined for 54 points, and New York couldn't do much to slow them down.

"[We need to] just be a little bit more physical. They were in the rhythm. Pick up our intensity on the ball with our physicality and stuff like that, and off-ball, they're moving really freely tonight, and they were in the rhythm all night," Brunson said.