Strus nets monster buzzer-beater as Cavs sink Mavs
Max Strus drained an astonishing 58-foot buzzer-beater as the Cleveland Cavaliers conjured a stunning late fightback to sink the Dallas Mavericks 121-119 on Tuesday. In a remarkable finale in Cleveland, Strus unleashed a mammoth heave from inside his own half to snatch victory from Dallas, who had grabbed a 119-118 lead with just over two seconds remaining in the game. Strus's miraculous effort was the final act of a thrilling fourth quarter rally by Cleveland, who trailed by 10 with under four minutes left after a superb 45-point performance from Mavs ace Luka Doncic. Strus was the catalyst for the Cavs turnaround, reeling off four straight three-pointers to allow Cleveland to get within one at 113-112 with just over 2 minutes remaining. Back-to-back threes from Donovan Mitchell put Cleveland 118-115 up but Dallas hit back to regain a one-point lead after a Kyrie Irving jump shot and a P.J. Washington layup. That set the stage for Strus to unfurl his game-winning three-quarter-court effort to spark pandemonium amongst the home crowd in Cleveland. In other games on Tuesday, the league-leading Boston Celtics extended their winning streak to nine games after a 117-99 defeat of the Philadelphia 76ers. Jaylen Brown [31 points], Jayson Tatum [29] and Kristaps Porzingis [23] led the way for Boston, who improved to 46-12 and lead second-placed Cleveland by 7.5 games. Tyrese Maxey finished with 32 points for Philadelphia, who have lost eight of 12 games in NBA MVP Joel Embiid's injury absence. In Minnesota, Anthony Edwards' 34-point total helped the Timberwolves to 114-105 win against the struggling San Antonio Spurs. Minnesota lead the Western Conference standings 41-17. In Milwaukee, Giannis Antetokounmpo finished with 24 points while Damian Lillard added 23 as the Bucks romped to a 123-85 rout of the Charlotte Hornets. Milwaukee coach Doc Rivers was pleased with his team's improved display on defense – an area that has been a problem for the team all season. In other games Tuesday, Chris Paul made a winning return from injury for Golden State as the Warriors blew past the Washington Wizards 123-112 in the US capital. Klay Thompson added another impressive display from the bench with 25 points to lead the Warriors scoring. (AFP)