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Good morning everyone, but especially…
TYRESE MAXEY AND THE PHILADELPHIA 76ERS
With all appearing lost and with another early exit from the playoffs looming, potentially leading to an offseason that could shake the organization to its core, Tyrese Maxey turned into a performance for the ages. O 76ers‘The scintillating guard wished his team a stunning 112-106 extra-time victory over the host Knicks this brings the series back to Philadelphia, with New York winning 3-2.
Maxey scored 46 points, including 17 in the fourth quarter. with seven of them coming in the final 26 seconds of regulation – five more in extra time, to provide the final twist in an absolutely wild series.
- Things seemed almost over when Deuce McBride hit a jumper with less than 30 seconds left in regulation to put the hosts up six.
- But Maxey soon returned, receiving Mitchell Robinson biting a bomb fake and somehow making a 3-pointer on the foul. He made the free throw to cut the deficit to two.
- Josh Hart made one of two free throws on the other end, and Maxey hit a straight 3 from near midcourt to tie it. Nico Batum then blocked Jalen Brunson to force overtime.
- In the extra session, New York took a quick five-point lead, but Maxey hit 3, Joel Embiid it finally started and Philadelphia recovered.
Maxey did it all, earning praise in LeBron James, Patrick Mahomes and others. He hit seven 3-pointers, used his blinding speed to get to the bucket and hit tough mid-range jumpers. He simply put the team on his back. Embiid shot just 7 of 19 and committed nine turnovers, a wreck due to injury and exhaustion (although he finished with a triple-double of 19 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists).
The 46 points tied Wilt Chamberlain for most in an elimination game in franchise history. It was Maxey to the max and it was mesmerizingwrites James Herbert.
- Herbert: “After the game, Kevin Johnson, Philadelphia’s head athletic trainer, talked to Maxey about the similarities between his fourth-quarter magic and Reggie Miller’s classic heroics of eight points in nine seconds at MSG in 1995. ‘I have to go back and watch some more,’ said the 23-year-old who saved the Sixers’ season. ‘That was a long time ago.’
On the same staircase where delirious fans shouted ‘LET’S GO KNICKS!’ as they left the arena eight days earlier, there was a stunned silence on Tuesday. Then a voice rhetorically asked the question that was on everyone’s mind: ‘What the hell happened?'”
It’s a brutal loss for the Knicks, who saw the pendulum of incredible late-game rallies swing emphatically the other way after performed his own miracle in Game 2. Robinson’s foul was inexcusable; no to miss before Maxey equalized was head-scratching. Now, they will have to win on the road in Game 6 or face a potentially grueling Game 7, and they will have to do it without Bojan Bogdanovicthat you are having season-ending foot surgery.
In another place, Evan Mobley had some huge baskets and a game save block like the Knights took a 3–2 series lead with a 104–103 victory over Magicand short-handed Money stayed alive with a 115-92 Game 5 win over the Pacemakers.
Honorable mentions
And it’s not such a good day for…
MIKE TROUT AND THE LOS ANGELES ANGELS
For the fourth consecutive year, Mike TroutIgor’s season was hampered by injuries. O Angels‘the star goes undergo surgery on a torn meniscus in his left knee. It’s not the end of the season, but it will likely cost him several months, and he was visibly emotional when discussing the injury.
Trout, 32, is slashing .220/.325/.541, so the average isn’t great, but the power is: he was the first MLB player to hit double-digit home runs this season. He also has six stolen bases, the same as his 2020-23 total Combined.
This is the sixth season of his 12-year, $426.5 million extension — the Angels owe him $35.45 million a year through 2030 — but he has spent much of it dealing with injuries:
- 2021: Missed 126 games (calf strain)
- 2022: Missed 43 games (back inflammation)
- 2023: Missed 80 games (broken hamate)
He played less than half of the Angels’ games during that span, and that trend will continue this year.
Not-so-honorable mentions
Kristaps Porzing is expected to miss time with a calf injury
Kristaps Porzingis is supposedly expected to miss “a minimum of several games” with a calf strain he suffered in game 4 against Warm. He has been ruled out for tonight’s Game 5 in Boston.
- The exact injury – a soleus strain – is the same injury Giannis Antetokounmpo suffered on April 9th. He hasn’t returned yet.
- Porzingis also suffered the injury in a similar manner: a no-contact situation that initially looked pretty bad.
- O Celts leads the series 3-1 and could likely take a while with Porzingis’ return.
Still, the fact that “soleus tension” has entered the NBA lexicon and has already captured one of the league’s stars for more than three weeks, which will worry Celtics fans, even if Boston he must look good in this series and the next one without Porzingis.
- Porzingis has been outstanding this season, shooting a career-high 52%, led by a career-high 61% from inside the arc. It had never been above 56% previously.
- His abilities to stretch the floor, finish at the rim (he had a career-high 88 dunks this season) and create his own shot fit together perfectly and help make Boston’s offensive machine work.
- Without Porzingis, Boston will rely more on Al Horford, Lucas Kornet and potentially Xavier Tillman Jr.
UEFA Champions League: draw Bayern Munich, Real Madrid; Dortmund-PSG preview
The stage was set for the stars to shine, and they delivered in a big way. Bayern Munchen It is Real Madrid drew 2-2 in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-finals, setting the stage for a thrilling second leg in Madrid next week.
Both teams had to recover. Vini Jr. opened the scoreboard in the 24th minute after a perfect pass from Tony Kroosbut the hosts changed things right after the break via Leroy Sanéin rocket It is Harry Kanein Penalty kick. Vini Jr. completed his brace in the 83rd minute with a Penalty kick.
The Real Madrid-Champions League game is a game made in heaven and has been shown againwrites Jonathan Johnson.
- Johnson: “Firstly, Real have a collective mentality that few clubs – if any – can come close to. It’s true that Bayern would normally be considered one of those, given their status as members of the European elite worthy of being in the same band selected, but there are levels to this and the manual was written and bound in Madrid before Carlos Ancelotti’his visit to the Spanish capital. This Real team is the product of years of success that generated an almost divine right to success in the Champions League, which resonated with each player.”
Bayern’s rollercoaster game, however, was emblematic of your seasonwrites James Benge.
Today, PSG visits Borussia Dortmund (view here). In our expert picksJonathan says…
- Johnson: “Dortmund 1-2 PSG – In both meetings so far this season, PSG leads 3-1 thanks to a 2-0 home victory in the first round of group stage games. Another 1-1 draw would be enough for the French champions here, but Luis Enrique You’ll want more and Les Parisiens are generally good on the road. Remember that PSG beat Dortmund on their way to the UCL final in 2020…”
Here they are Tom Fornelli’s singing choicesand here is how Enrique I have PSG here.
What will we watch on Wednesday
Borussia Dortmund x PSG3pm on CBS and Paramount+
Game 5: Playoff at Celtics7:30 pm on TNT
Game 5: Golden Knights in the Stars7:30 pm on ESPN
Game 5: Mavericks at Clippers10pm on TNT
Game 5: Kings at Oilers10pm on ESPN