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• Giannis and Lillard 'very' close to returning as Bucks keep Pacers series alive

  Having kept their Eastern Conference first-round series with the Indiana Pacers alive with Tuesday's Game 5 win, the Milwaukee Bucks could recover their two leading scorers for Game 6.

  Despite star duo Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard missing out due to injury, the third-seeded Bucks dragged the series back to 3-2 with a 115-92 victory at Fiserv Forum.

  Khris Middleton had 29 points and 12 rebounds – his third straight game with at least 25 points – while Bobby Portis Jr. also had 29 as he made amends for being ejected in Milwaukee's Game 4 defeat.

  That meant they became the first team in NBA history to win a playoff game when deprived of their two top scorers from the regular season.

  The Bucks will go back on the road for another must-win game on Thursday, and they are hoping to have reinforcements.

  Two-time NBA MVP Antetokounmpo has missed all five games in the series with a left calf strain, while Lillard has missed the last two contests after hurting his Achilles last week.

  After Tuesday's game, coach Doc Rivers said both players were scheduled to work out on Wednesday and suggested they could be in contention for Game 6.

  "I think they're very, very, very close," Rivers said.

  Rivers was delighted by the way their team-mates stepped up in difficult circumstances, adding: "You could feel the energy in our film and in our walk-through.

  "We were coming to play and win tonight. You could feel it in the preparation, that was not a team walking through a walk-through, thinking this was it. That's a team thinking they can win."

  For Middleton, it was simply about staying alive and giving the Bucks' stars a chance to impact the series.

  "We have to find a way to win, whatever it takes," Middleton said. "We're still confident. Our backs were up against the wall tonight, we had a great home crowd that got us going. 

  "So we're going to have to find a way. That's the only way to put it, find a way to get this next one and force a Game 7."

• Marsh named captain in Australia's T20 World Cup squad as Smith and Fraser-McGurk miss out

  Mitchell Marsh will captain Australia at next month's T20 World Cup, but Steve Smith and Jake Fraser-McGurk have been left out of the 15-man squad.

  Marsh, who has shared the duties on an interim basis since Aaron Finch's retirement, was named the Baggy Greens' permanent T20 skipper on Wednesday.

  Test captain Pat Cummins, fast bowler Mitchell Starc and Glenn Maxwell have also been named in the squad, which features 11 of the players that were part of the team that won this tournament in 2021.

  However, there is no place for former skipper Smith following a difficult spell of form, while Fraser-McGurk is also absent despite his impressive form in the Indian Premier League.

  "This is an experienced squad with extensive World Cup experience that offers a variety of structures and covers the scenarios the panel believes will factor in the West Indies with the unique nature of the venues and our opponents," selection chief George Bailey said.

  "Steve Smith, Matt Short, Jason Behrendorff, Aaron Hardie, Spencer Johnson and Xavier Bartlett were all part of long conversations, along with several others, including Jake Fraser-McGurk who is yet to play T20 International cricket but continues to impress and is developing rapidly.

  "Being constrained to a squad of 15 for World Cups is always a challenge given the different scenarios and options we’d like to cover.  

  "Ultimately, the balance of the final 15 needs to provide the best chance of being successful in this campaign."

  "It's been an immense privilege to play for my country and now an even greater honour to lead the squad to a World Cup," Marsh added.

  "We have had some strong success in recent times, and I am hopeful that will continue in what looks like a wide-open tournament."

  Australia will begin their tournament against Oman on June 5, while they will also play England, Scotland and Namibia in Group B.

  Australia's provisional squad:

  Mitchell Marsh (captain), Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa

• NBA: Maxey, 76ers stun Knicks with late rally for OT win in Game 5

  Tyrese Maxey scored seven points in the final 25 seconds of regulation to save Philadelphia’s season and finished with a playoff career-high 46 as the 76ers staved off elimination in their Eastern Conference first-round series with an unlikely 112-106 victory over the New York Knicks on Tuesday.

  Down six with 28 seconds left in regulation, Maxey converted the rare four-point play with 25 seconds to play, and after Josh Hart’s free throw, hit a 35-foot 3-pointer to tie it at 97 with 8.1 seconds remaining in front of a stunned Madison Square Garden crowd.

  Joel Embiid had 19 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists and nine turnovers for the 76ers, who will host Game 6 on Thursday.

  Maxey added nine assists and was 7 of 12 from 3-point range.

  Brunson scored 40 points and Hart had 18 with nine rebounds for the Knicks, who were tantalisingly close to reaching the Eastern Conference semifinals for the second straight season.

  Brunson scored the first five points of overtime but Maxey's 3 triggered a 9-0 run that Embiid capped with a 3-point play with 1:40 left for a 106-102 lead. Brunson tied it with a 3 but Kelly Oubre Jr. made the tiebreaking basket with 62 seconds to play, and Tobias Harris sealed it with two free throws. 

   

  Short-handed Bucks stay alive

  Khris Middleton had 29 points and 12 rebounds and Bobby Portis added 29 with 10 boards as the Milwaukee Bucks stayed alive with a 115-92 win over the Indiana Pacers in Game 5 despite missing leading scorers Giannis Antetokounmpo and Damian Lillard.

  Portis had the highest point total of his playoff career and made amends after he was ejected from a Game 4 loss. Middleton had his third straight game with at least 25 points.

  Tyrese Haliburton scored 16 points and Myles Turner added 13 for the Pacers, who still lead the series 3-2 and will try to close it out at home in Game 6 on Thursday. Indiana hasn’t advanced past the first round since 2014.

  The Bucks got a balanced effort without Antetokounmpo and Lillard, as every starter scored in double figures. Antetokounmpo has missed the entire series and hasn’t played since straining his left calf on April 9. Lillard sat out a second consecutive game after injuring his Achilles tendon in Game 3 on Friday.

   

  Cavs edge Magic for 3-2 lead

  Donovan Mitchell scored 28 points and Evan Mobley came up with a huge block in the final seconds to lift the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 104-103 win over the Orlando Magic to take a 3-2 lead in their Eastern Conference series.

  After Mitchell missed a jumper with 15.7 seconds left, Franz Wagner drove the left side for a potential game-tying layup but was denied at the rim by Mobley with six seconds left.

  Mitchell, who had 14 fourth-quarter points, was then fouled and made two free throws with 3.2 seconds remaining to up Cleveland’s lead to 104-100. Paolo Banchero made a 3-pointer in the final second for the final margin.

  The Cavs bounced back at home after losing two road games and can finish off the Magic in Orlando in Game 6 on Friday.

  Max Strus scored 16 points to help Cleveland offset the loss of starting center Jarrett Allen (bruised rib) and Mobley added 14 points and 13 rebounds.

  Banchero scored 16 of his 39 points in the fourth quarter and grabbed eight rebounds, but the next closest Magic player was Wagner with 14 points.