Pacers coach Rick Carlisle, who erupted and was ejected in the final minute of Wednesday’s Game 2 loss, said he felt unfair officiating again favored the big-market Knicks.
The Indiana Pacers made an organizational decision to not make officiating an issue either publicly or privately earlier this week when several vital calls went against them in their Game 1 loss to the New York Knicks.
But Pacers coach Rick Carlisle abandoned the strategy Wednesday, erupting in the final minute of the Knicks’ 130-121 Game 2 victory that gave them a 2-0 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Carlisle received two technical fouls and was ejected. He was upset about several calls, especially when officials reversed a double-dribble violation that could have given the Pacers a key possession with the game still in doubt.
That was the opposite of what happened in Game 1, in which a kicked ball violation was called in error against the Pacers but not corrected, a decision that ended up costing the team three vital points.
Carlisle reached his boiling point in Game 2. He said the Pacers identified 29 questionable calls they said went unfairly against them Monday night but elected not to send them to the league office for review. They will be making another edit from Wednesday’s game and sending it this time, Carlisle said.
