What a difference forty-eight hours can make.

On Friday, the New York Knicks led the Indiana Pacers 2-0 and looked to be cruising towards a berth in the Eastern Conference Finals. Two days later, they left the Hoosier State with the series tied at two after getting vaporized on Mother’s Day.

In front of a raucous home crowd, the Pacers raced out to a double-digit lead after just six minutes of game action. Indiana took advantage of an increasingly depleted Knick frontcourt and smashed the ball inside as 18 of their 34 first-quarter points came inside the paint.

Defensively, the home team hounded All-NBA PG Jalen Brunson, early and often, who looked far from the player who scored 43 points in game one. The former Villanova star went 0-5 in the opening 12 minutes and ended the game with a measly 18 points, his lowest output of the playoffs.

Indiana kept the pressure on for the remainder of the first half, extending their lead to 28 points when the halftime buzzer rang. Rick Carlisle’s team detonated from behind the arc, knocking down five threes in the frame, and ended the match with a scorching 45.2% from long range. The Pacers did an excellent job pushing the tempo all afternoon, getting quickly into their offensive sets and running New York off the floor.

The Knicks never fought back.

The Eastern Conference’s #2 seed came out flat to start the second half and fell behind by 38, the largest deficit of the game, as the Pacers finished the third on an 8-1 run. New York Knicks Head Coach Tom Thibodeau waved the white flag and pulled his starters at the beginning of the fourth quarter. Six Pacers scored in double figures, and Indiana shot over 50% from the field as they dismantled the Knicks from start to finish, taking game four 121-89.

After the game, Thibodeau put the loss in perspective, stating, “This team has responded all year, so that’s what we’re expecting to do.” He expects a better effort from his squad in game five back at home, but the Knicks are frustrated.

Brunson and Pacers star Pascal Siakam exchanged words at halfcourt as the contest concluded. The body blows, extended minutes, and frenetic style of play are beginning to catch up to the boys in orange and blue. The Knicks will be ecstatic to return to Madison Square Garden, where they have lost only once all postseason, as their home fans provide the energy the team thrives off of. However, the atmosphere will be tense from the tip-off as the Knicks face their first adversity of the playoffs and the series shifts to a best of three.

Party like it’s 80 million years ago: the Raptors are going to the playoffs!

Devin Booker is probably happy.

A 118-108 victory over the Atlanta Hawks Tuesday night clinched the postseason for Toronto, which got 31 points and 13 rebounds from Pascal Siakam and 19 points and 14 rebounds from Scottie Barnes.

Chris Boucher scored 18 points, Gary Trent Jr. 14, and Fred VanVleet 12 in the win.

Trae Young had 26 points and 15 assists in defeat, while the Hawks lost for the first time in six tries and can now finish no higher than seventh in the conference. Teams finishing in 7-10 in each conference must partake in the play-in tournament.

“Obviously we wish we were higher in the standings but we’re not,” Young said. “We are where we are. We’ve got to take care of business with what’s ahead of us.”

Toronto (46-33) has now won 12 of its last 16 games and has clinched at worst the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. They’ll next host the 76ers on Thursday, then the Rockets on Friday before closing out the season on Sunday at Madison Square Garden against the Knicks.

“We did what we set out to do in the regular season,” VanVleet said. “Now it’s time to go see what we can do.”

“They found a way to grind out enough wins to get them in this situation,” Raptors coach Nick Nurse said. “I don’t think they were picked to be here, so that’s always a good accomplishment.”

The Hawks next host Washington on Wednesday before finishing the season with games at Miami and Houston. The team is 15-24 on the road this season—fewer road wins than any postseason contender in either conference.

Toronto Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry was overheard yelling “Come see me” at a Sixers fan on his way to the locker room after a 110-104 loss in Philadelphia on Sunday.

Appear repeating the phrase, Lowry added, “I live at 20th and Lehigh. Come see me,” according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

“I don’t know him. He talks to much, but isn’t worth my time,” said Lowry. In the post-game locker room interview, he said it wasn’t surprising that something like this would happen to him as someone who was born and raised in Philly. “No. It’s Philadelphia. I respect it. When I come home, I’m going to be there, so if they’ve got a problem, they can find me,” Lowry joked.

The former Villanova Wildcat has missed the last 11 games with a thumb injury and returned this past Tuesday against Miami. He finished the game with 26 points, six rebounds and five assists in 38 minutes. The Raptors started the season off hot and were on a seven-game winning streak before losing the last three games. This includes their first two home losses of the season.

Coming off the first championship in Toronto’s history, the Raptors are looking to fill the void that Kawhi Leonard left after signing a free agent deal with the Clippers this offseason. They already had one of the best defensive teams last season, but this year without Leonard players like Pascal Siakam and Fred Vanvleet are getting more touches and showing improvement on their offense. Siakam is averaging 24.6 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.  All of which are career-highs and will most likely lead to the forward’s first all-star selection. Vanvleet is also averaging career highs in four categories contributing 18 points, 3.8 rebounds and 7 assists per game in 36.6 minutes of action.

Lowry looks to be returning to all-star form himself with averages of 21 points, 4.6 rebounds and 6.9 assists this season through 11 games. The first time he’s averaged over 20 points since the 2016-17 season.

The Raptors look to snap their losing streak when they face the Bulls in Chicago tonight before facing the Clippers at home in Leonard’s return.

On Wednesday night in Oakland, CA, the Golden State Warriors and Toronto Raptors will take part in Game three of the 2019 NBA Finals.

For the Warriors especially, Game three could end up proving to be a pivotal point of the series for them. Statistically speaking, winning Game three at home would increase the Warriors’ chances of winning the NBA Finals by 15%. In addition to not having Kevin Durant, though, the Warriors may find themselves down two more players as well.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr announced yesterday that Kevon Looney’s season is likely over due to a fracture to his right rib cage. Looney missed the entirety of the second half of Game two, but it was unclear until after the game what the extent of Looney’s injury was. Game 3 in Oakland will air at 9 p.m. EST on ABC.

Another Warrior whose status is unclear heading into Game three is Klay Thompson. Thompson left Game two during the fourth quarter with a mild hamstring strain and was seen limping in the tunnel, congratulating teammates following the win in Toronto. Unlike with Looney, there is optimism within the Warriors camp that Thompson will be fully available to play in Game three. That is big news for an already depleted Warriors team.

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Heading into Game three, the Raptors know that it is do-or-die time for their season. Once the Warriors opened up the second half of Game two on an 18-0 scoring run, they never once looked back.  After Game two, Raptors guard Kyle Lowry said, “third quarter we didn’t play well enough. We missed too many shots. They got out in transition and got a little confidence going. We lost the game there.”  Raptors center Marc Gasol post-game said, “They moved the ball really well and were running freely. Once they run freely, everything opens up for them.” The Raptors will need to get more out rising star Pascal Siakam if they want to win Game three. After a brilliant 32 points and eight rebounds on 14/17 shooting in game one, Siakam put up just 12 points and eight rebounds on 5/18 shooting in Game two.

The Toronto Raptors‘ supporting cast strived on Thursday night, with Marc Gasol and Pascal Siakam leading the way with a combined 52 points. Siakam was everywhere, as he finished with eight rebounds and five assists, while also making 11 consecutive shots during the second half. He even took it upon himself to finish the game guarding Klay Thompson, shutting him down after his hot first half start. The Raptors beat the Golden State Warriors 118-109 for Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

Stephen Curry needed more help Thursday night. He finished with 34, with Thompson and Draymond Green finishing with 21 and 10. Green provided a triple double with 10 rebounds and assists as well, but the role players failed to show up. The 10 day rest after sweeping the Portland Trail Blazers in the conference finals proved to be an issue as they started off rusty. It was the lowest scoring quarter for the Warriors this postseason. Frustrations flared during the fourth when Thompson received a technical foul for throwing the ball at the ref, and Green had words to say to court-side, diehard Raptors’ fan, Drake when the game was over.

The Warriors lacked ability in the front court, as Gasol capitalized on both ends of the floor, making smart decisions with the basketball to stretch open the Warriors. With the Warriors having nobody nowhere near his size and ability, Gasol tacked up seven boards and missed only four shots. DeMarcus Cousins returned to action coming off the bench after being sidelined with a quad injury, but proved to be a half-step behind the Raptors’ pace.

The best news for the Raptors this game is Kawhi Leonard wasn’t to his usual standard. Although he scored 23 and grabbed eight rebounds, his usual 40 point game and clutch shots didn’t come, but his teammates picked up the slack in stride. Danny Green scored 11 and Fred VanVleet scored 15 off the bench as well. With Leonard on his day, the Raptors have a serious shot of breaking the Warriors’ title spree in this series.

The big question is now at hand. Will Kevin Durant return and help this Warriors’ team now? After losing him in the Western Conference Semi-Finals, the Warriors have yet to lose a game until Toronto on Thursday night. He traveled with the team to Toronto and head coach Steve Kerr has yet to say whether he will be fit or not for Game 2 in Toronto on Sunday.