NEW YORK — The New York Knicks held off a furious late rally by the Indiana Pacers to win Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semifinals 108-104 on Monday night at Madison Square Garden, seizing a 3-2 series lead behind 34 points from guard Jalen Brunson and a string of defensive stops in the closing minutes from forward OG Anunoby.

The win moves New York one victory away from its first conference finals appearance in more than two decades. Game 6 is scheduled for Wednesday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, where the Pacers have not lost a postseason game this spring.

“This wasn’t pretty, and they made us pay for every mistake,” Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau told reporters in his postgame news conference. “But we got the stops we needed. Guys took the assignment personally in the fourth.”

Indiana, which trailed by as many as 17 points in the third quarter, used a 23-9 run bridging the third and fourth quarters to cut the deficit to one with 4:12 remaining. Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton finished with 28 points and 11 assists and connected on a step-back three with 1:48 left to give Indiana its first lead since the opening minutes.

But New York answered on the next possession, when Brunson drew a foul on a baseline drive and converted both free throws. On the ensuing trip, Anunoby stripped Pacers forward Pascal Siakam at the elbow, leading to a Mikal Bridges transition layup that pushed the margin back to three.

Anunoby, acquired by the Knicks in a December 2023 trade with Toronto, has emerged as the defensive fulcrum of New York’s playoff run. He finished Game 5 with 19 points, eight rebounds, three steals and two blocks while drawing the primary assignment on Siakam, who was held to 14 points on 5-of-17 shooting.

“OG just changes possessions,” said Bridges, who added 21 points. “You can feel it on the floor. The other team has to think twice about every catch.”

The Pacers, who entered the postseason as the East’s third seed after a 53-win regular season, had a chance to tie or take the lead on three of their final four possessions. Haliburton missed a contested three from the right wing with 39 seconds left; on the next trip, Indiana center Myles Turner committed an offensive foul setting a screen on Brunson, a call that Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle questioned at length during a timeout.

“I thought it was a tough whistle at a tough time,” Carlisle said afterward. “But we had our opportunities before that, and we didn’t make enough plays in the third quarter. That’s the story.”

Carlisle confirmed that Pacers wing Aaron Nesmith, who left in the second quarter after rolling his left ankle, would be re-evaluated Tuesday. Nesmith had been Indiana’s primary defender on Brunson through the first four games of the series.

Brunson, named to the All-NBA second team last week, shot 12-of-23 from the field and added eight assists. His scoring output included a 14-point third quarter, during which he worked the right side of the floor against a series of switches and drew four fouls on three different Indiana defenders.

Asked about the load he has carried in the series — he is averaging 31.6 points through five games — Brunson deflected. “We’ve got guys who can score. We’ve got guys who can guard. My job is just to read what they’re giving us. Tonight they were doubling late, and that opened things up for Mikal and Josh,” he said, referring to forward Josh Hart, who contributed 12 points and 13 rebounds.

The game turned in the third quarter, when New York opened on a 14-2 run after halftime. Center Mitchell Robinson, who has played limited minutes this postseason because of a lingering ankle issue, contributed four offensive rebounds and a pair of put-backs during that stretch. Robinson finished with eight points and 12 rebounds in 22 minutes.

Indiana shot 41.3 percent from the field and 31 percent from three-point range, well below its regular-season marks. Turner, after a strong first half, was held scoreless in the second.

The Knicks-Pacers winner is expected to meet either the Boston Celtics or the Cleveland Cavaliers, who are tied 2-2 in their semifinal series. Boston hosts Game 5 on Tuesday.

Across the league, the Western Conference semifinals have produced the postseason’s most lopsided series so far, with the Oklahoma City Thunder leading the Denver Nuggets 3-1 and the Minnesota Timberwolves up 3-1 on the Los Angeles Lakers. Both Game 5s tip off Wednesday.

Elsewhere in sports Monday, Major League Baseball announced that Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve had been placed on the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain. The Astros, who entered Monday three games behind Seattle in the AL West, said Altuve would be re-evaluated next week.

Thibodeau, asked whether his team could close out the series on the road, smiled briefly. “We’ve got to win one game. That’s all it is. One game, on their floor, against a team that’s played great at home. We’ll be ready.”

Tipoff for Game 6 is set for 7 p.m. Eastern. League officials said the schedule for a potential Game 7 in New York on Friday would be confirmed Wednesday night.