Karl-Anthony Towns scores 40 as Knicks top Pacers

Karl-Anthony Towns recorded 40 points and 12 rebounds, Josh Hart added a season-high 30 points, and the New York Knicks beat the Indiana Pacers 128-115 on Tuesday in Indianapolis.Hart also had 10 rebounds and five assists while shooting 12 of 16 from the field. Miles McBride added 15 points for New York, which drew clear in the fourth quarter to win the season series against Indiana 2-1.New York led by eight early in the fourth quarter before using a 13-5 run to go up 116-100 with 5:41 remaining on a layup by Hart. The Knicks remained in control to win for the eighth time in their past 10 games.Pascal Siakam led Indiana with 24 points. Bennedict Mathurin scored 18 off the bench, Thomas Bryant had 18 points and nine rebounds, Tyrese Haliburton added 16 points and eight assists, and Ben Sheppard had 12 points.Bryant started in place of center Myles Turner, who missed his second straight game with a cervical strain. Indiana shot 29 percent (9 of 31) from 3-point range and lost for the third time in its past four games.New York led 27-26 after one period and used a 15-3 run late in the second quarter to move ahead 61-50.Towns scored 24 points in the first half for the Knicks, who led 68-60 at intermission after holding the Pacers to 30 percent shooting (6 of 20) from beyond the arc.