Knicks 109, Pacers 106: Scenes from the night it got real

Whatever the third base of winning streaks is, the New York Knicks got there tonight, multiple late comebacks eeking out a 109-106 win over the Pacers in Indiana. The win is their seventh straight; at 10-6 their road mark is second-best in the league, behind Boston. Every win in an extended winning streak has its own significance. This one was a big one.

Chicago and Indiana have never been easy places to play, even in good years. It’s feeling like that’s where we are now, isn’t it? Is it safe yet to call this a good year? The Knicks have won six in a row away from the World’s Most Self-Referential Arena. I don’t think bad teams do that. I don’t think mediocre teams do that.

In a back-and-forth affair, the Knicks fell behind by six twice late in the fourth. They fought back within one, dropped off, pulled within one again. They’ve given us nothing but reason to trust they’d find a way to win, and once again they did. Watching your team win never gets old. Watching them losing late and still expecting them to win . . . I think only one type of team creates that kind of faith. You know.

Recap to come later. Sweet dreams.