Knicks, Pacers advance, leaving Bucks, 76ers with big questions; Kentucky Derby picks

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THE NEW YORK KNICKS AND THE INDIANA PACERS

They blew a 22-point lead. They overcame a 10-point deficit. Now, they’re heading to the second round, and they did it their way. The Knicks topped the 76ers, 118-115, in a back-and-forth thriller emblematic of their series as a whole.

Jalen Brunson willed New York to the finish line, as he has so many times this remarkable season. The crafty lefty scored 41 points, 12 of which came in the final seven minutes. He’s the first Knick to score at least 40 points in four straight playoff games since Bernard King in 1984.

But he was far from alone. Donte DiVincenzo, a marvelous offseason acquisition, scored 23 points and hit five 3-pointers. But Josh Hart hit the biggest 3 with 25.1 seconds left to put the visitors up for good.

All the while, New York gathered 20 offensive rebounds, turned 12 Philadelphia turnovers into 22 points and got 113 of their 118 points from their starters. They’re tough as nails, unfazed by big moments and unrelenting.

Now they get the Pacers, who cruised by the Giannis Antetokoumpo-less and Damian Lillard-hampered Bucks, 120-98, for their first series win since 2014, when a young Paul George was starring in Indiana.

This year’s squad has another young star in Tyrese Haliburton, but it was his backup who played hero. T.J. McConnell scored 20 points on just nine shots to ignite the hosts. He did it all when Indiana needed him most, Jack Maloney explains.

• McConnell: “He was…