For the first time in 25 years, the New York Knicks are back in the Eastern Conference Finals. Their showdown with the Indiana Pacers will tip off Wednesday at Madison Square Garden.
The Knicks came into the postseason with an 0-8 record against the top two seeds in the Eastern Conference. Despite their struggles in the regular season, they managed to take down the Boston Celtics in the conference semifinals. Jalen Brunson and Mikal Bridges led the charge for Tom Thibodeau’s squad. The Pacers, on the other hand, took care of business against the Cleveland Cavaliers and Milwaukee Bucks thanks to Tyrese Haliburton’s brilliance. He’s averaging 17.5 points, 9.3 assists and 5.5 rebounds per game this postseason.
There’s no question Madison Square Garden will be deafening for Game 1 between the Knicks and Pacers. Although their rivalry has been dormant for a while, it was reawakened last postseason when Indiana eliminated New York.
Knicks fans will be as loud as possible for Wednesday’s game, make no mistake about it. Of course, they’ll have some assistance from the dance team.
With Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals almost here, Nicole Petriello of the Knicks City Dancers appears to be going viral. Petriello, a rookie dancer for the Knicks, has been sharing photos and videos on Instagram throughout the playoffs.
Just months before she joined the Knicks City Dancers, Petriello graduated from Pace University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Commercial Dance. When she joined the Knicks City Dancers in the fall, Petriello shared a few pictures on Instagram with this message: “Getting to do what I love with people I love makes me feel like the luckiest girl in the world.”
Petriello currently has over 4,100 followers on Instagram. That number is bound to grow in the coming days.
Game 1 between the Knicks and Pacers will tip off at 8 p.m. ET Wednesday.
The Eastern Conference Finals will be televised on TNT.
