Best moments of the ILT20 group stage action

LOS ANGELES: Darius Garland drilled a three-pointer from the halfcourt logo as time expired to lift the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 118-115 NBA victory over the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday.

Up by 12 with 9:03 remaining, Eastern Conference leaders Cleveland weathered a Pistons comeback keyed by Cade Cunningham, who scored 21 of his 38 points in the fourth quarter.

Fouled on a three-point attempt, Cunningham hit all three free-throws to tie it at 115-115 with five seconds remaining.

But Garland made sure the Cavs escaped with a win, a day after falling to reigning champions Boston in a battle of the East’s top two teams.

“That’s what great players do, they make big plays,” Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson said of Garland, who finished with 25 points.

Evan Mobley scored 30 points for the Cavaliers, who were without Donovan Mitchell because of a sore shoulder but improved to 41-10.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was the star for Western Conference leaders Oklahoma City, pouring in 50 points as the Thunder pulled away ruthlessly in the second half to beat the Phoenix Suns 140-109.

“Just trying to be aggressive, play basketball and take what the defense gives me,” Gilgeous-Alexander said after his third 50-point performance in the Thunder’s last seven games.

Down by two at halftime to a Suns team shooting better than 60 percent from the field, the Thunder responded with a vengeance, opening the third quarter on a 20-2 scoring run.

Gilgeous-Alexander scored 18 points in the third, when the Thunder out-scored the Suns 43-16 to seize control.

It was just one of the eye-catching performances on a night when Anthony Edwards score 49 points to propel the Minnesota Timberwolves to a 127-108 home victory over the Chicago Bulls.

Edwards drilled six of the Timberwolves’ 20 three-pointers and made 17 of his 18 free-throw attempts as Minnesota avoided a third straight defeat.

It came down to the wire in Atlanta, where Victor Wembanyama made the game-winning free throw as the San Antonio Spurs celebrated the arrival of star guard De’Aaron Fox with a 126-125 victory over the Hawks.

A game that the Spurs led by 20 points early in the fourth quarter nearly got away, but French phenom Wembanyama came through.

His tip-in dunk off a Fox miss gave the Spurs a 125-123 lead with 30.4 seconds left.

Trae Young tied it at 125-125 with 8.5 seconds left, but Wembanyama was fouled at the rim and the Spurs star calmly made the first free throw before intentionally missing the second — leaving the Hawks scrambling unsuccessfully to respond as time ran out.

It was a frantic end to Fox’s first game with the Spurs, who acquired him in a trade from the Sacramento Kings on Sunday in a three-team trade.

Fox and Wembanyama scored 24 points apiece. Fox added 13 assists and three steals and Wembanyama pulled down 12 rebounds.

Giannis Antetokounmpo was a late scratch for the Milwaukee Bucks with tightness in his left calf, but Damian Lillard stepped up with 29 points and 12 assists as the Bucks beat the Hornets 112-102 in Charlotte.

The Miami Heat, fueled by 30 points from Tyler Herro, beat the 76ers 108-101 in Philadelphia in a game played as news broke that the Heat had traded disgruntled star Jimmy Butler to the Golden State Warriors.

Tyrese Maxey scored 31 points to lead Philadelphia, who were without star big man Joel Embiid, who was rested a day after he posted a triple-double in his return from a month-long injury absence.

The Warriors, whose players learned before tipoff that Dennis Schroder and Andrew Wiggins had been traded to Miami in the deal for Butler, came up short in a back-and-forth battle with the Jazz in Utah.

Utah’s Keyonte George hit the go-ahead basket with 26.6 remaining and the Jazz held on for a 131-128 victory.

Jordan Clarkson led Utah with 31 points and George added 26 off the bench. Six Utah players scored in double figures as the Jazz withstood a 32-point performance from Golden State star Stephen Curry.

DUBAI: The Dubai Capitals clinched a thrilling last-ball victory against the Desert Vipers on Wednesday, securing their place in the final of the DP World ILT20 season three.

In a nail-biting finish at the Dubai International Stadium, an all-round masterclass from Gulbadin Naib — featuring a third consecutive half-century against the Vipers, and a two-wicket haul — propelled the Capitals to a five-wicket win.

The triumph not only marked the second-highest run chase in T20s at the venue but also extended the Capitals’ dominance over the Vipers with their fifth consecutive win against the side.

Earlier in the evening, Alex Hales lit up the innings with a blistering 67 off just 32 balls, forging a 98-run partnership with Max Holden to give the Vipers a flying start. However, the Capitals fought back brilliantly with the ball, restricting the Vipers to 189/7 and setting the stage for a dramatic chase.

Chasing a steep target amidst the pressure of a playoff, the Dubai Capitals had a steady powerplay of 47 runs without losing any wickets. Adam Rossington struck Sam Curran for three boundaries in the fifth over to make his intentions clear, but the Capitals were already falling behind.

Meanwhile, Shai Hope mustered a run-a-ball knock of 17 runs before he was claimed by Wanindu Hasaranga in the seventh over. The runs dried up after the first six overs and the situation worsened when Lockie Ferguson cleaned up Rossington for 44 runs in 31 balls in the 10th over to bring the scoreline to 67/2.

Naib and skipper Sam Billings were tasked with recalibrating the run chase and the pair got to work quickly. Billings attacked Mohammad Amir in the 12th over, hitting two fours and a six, then reverse-swept Hasaranga for three fours and a six in the next over. However, a mix-up led to his run-out in the same over, cutting short his explosive innings at 38 runs off 16 balls.

Naib motored on as he was joined by Rovman Powell. The Capitals needed 52 runs from 30 balls. Powell raced to 20 runs before he was scalped by David Payne in the 18th over. The Capitals required 12 in the last over and Naib was lucky to squeeze six runs off the first two balls. He was dropped by Dhruv Parashar on the next ball but perished a ball later with the scores tied. Sikandar Raza struck a boundary on the last ball to seal the run chase.

In the first innings, the UAE’s Farhan Khan removed Rahmanullah Gurbaz to give the Capitals a breakthrough in the first over. The powerplay belonged to the Vipers as Hales and Holden steered them to 64/1 in six overs. Hales, who was particularly destructive, was dropped in the fifth over. The same over would see 14 runs as the error proved costly.

Hales dispatched Raza for two consecutive sixes in the seventh over as he brought up a 28-ball fifty. He smashed seven fours and cleared the ropes thrice to reach the milestone for the ninth time in the DP World ILT20.

The Dubai Capitals bounced back to derail the Vipers’ onslaught. While the first seven overs had seen 84 runs, the next seven overs only produced 45 runs, courtesy of tight spells from the spin duo of Haider Ali and Qais Ahmad.

Though Holden was the more conservative partner, the pair had put on 98 runs in 52 balls until Naib caught Hales off his own bowling in the ninth over. Naib was in action again as Holden holed out to him at long-on, off Ahmad, for 36 runs in 26 balls. The Vipers were at 107/3 in 10.1 overs.

Curran and Dan Lawrence moved with caution, preserving their wicket as the Vipers limped to 136/3 in 15 overs. Curran broke the shackles with two sixes off Qais, but was caught by Naib in the same over, for 24 runs in 21 balls.

While Rutherford and Hasaranga departed cheaply, Lawrence found a few more boundaries but departed for 35 runs to Dushmantha Chameera in the 19th over. It was Khuzaima Tanveer’s late flourish of 15 runs in five deliveries including a six and two fours in the final over that helped the Vipers post 189/7 in 20 overs. 

Player of the Match Naib said: “When you played a good game in the past, you remind yourself of that. I was reminded of the previous fifties I got. I took some time at the start. I can play at any position.

“Number three now is my lucky number. I have opened as well so I can bat anywhere. We played a lot of cricket here in Dubai. It was a pressure game, and I love pressure games. With the ball, I used the surface. I used my variations a lot.”

The Desert Vipers’ captain Ferguson commented: “It was a tough night. It was a great game of cricket, obviously dew came on and made the game difficult for us. We were unfortunate not to have come out on top. I thought it was a great total but it’s T20 cricket. Alex Hales played very well earlier.”

The MI Emirates will take on the Sharjah Warriorz in the eliminator on Thursday. The winner of the encounter will face the Dubai Capitals for a place in the final.

Brief scores

Dubai Capitals beat Desert Vipers by 5 wickets

Desert Vipers 189/7 in 20 overs (Alex Hales 67, Max Holden 36, Dan Lawrence 35, Gulbadin Naib 2 for 25, Qais Ahmad 2 for 29)

Dubai Capitals 193/5 in 20 overs (Gulbadin Naib 62, Adam Rossington 44, Sam Billings 38, Lockie Ferguson 2 for 32, David Payne 1 for 31)