Hawks on brink of East finals
PHILADELPHIA, June 17, (AP): Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks pulled off a playoff comeback for the ages against the Philadelphia 76ers to move within a victory of the Eastern Conference Finals.
Young was fouled on a 3-pointer and hit all three free throws with 1:26 left to cap a 26-point comeback and send Atlanta on its way to a 109-106 victory over the 76ers on Wednesday night in Game 5.
The Hawks won in Philadelphia for second time in the series and can advance to the conference final for the first time since 2015 with a victory Friday night in Atlanta.
Young scored 39 points and added to a postseason where he has become a breakout star.
Joel Embiid scored 17 points in the first quarter and had the Sixers on their way toward a romp with a 26-point lead in the first half. They still led 87-69 at the end of the third before they collapsed.
Lou Williams, Danilo Gallinari and Young opened the fourth on a huge run against the Sixers’ second unit and kept attacking once 76ers coach Doc Rivers was forced to put the starters in and save the lead.
Gallinari hit a 3 that made it 87-76 and Embiid sprang from his cool down seat behind the basket and ran to the scorer’s table to check back in the game. He instantly scored and pushed the lead back to 13.
BASKETBALL
Didn’t matter.
The big shots kept coming for the Hawks -- Williams buried a 3 that made it an 11-point game - and Young kept hitting his floaters and his fouls shots.
Ben Simmons, along with Embiid the cornerstone for the Sixers, missed free throw after free throw much as he has for most of the postseason that sped up Atlanta’s comeback.
Young’s floater brought them within two and then he leaned into a 3-pointer and was fouled by Matisse Thybulle. Young, taunted all series by Sixers fans, calmly stepped to the line and buried all three shots. And so it was, 105-104 Hawks.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft sat courtside and saw yet another big collapse - only this one against Atlanta.
The Hawks led by 26 points in a Game 1 victory and won Game 4 at home on Monday.
Atlanta fans can roll off a lengthy list of infamous collapses in its collective sports history.
Clippers 119, Jazz 111
In Salt Lake City, Paul George scored 37 points and grabbed 16 rebounds to lead the Los Angeles Clippers to a 119-111 victory over the Utah Jazz in Game 5 of their Western Conference semifinals series .
Marcus Morris scored 25 points and Reggie Jackson added 22 for the Clippers. Los Angeles won its third straight game to push the top-seeded Jazz to the brink of elimination. The Clippers shot 51% from the field with Kawhi Leonard in the lineup.
Bojan Bogandovic scored 32 points - while making nine 3-pointers - to lead Utah. Donovan Mitchell added 21 points.
Rudy Gobert chipped in 17 points and 11 rebounds. Six players scored in double figures for the Jazz.
Utah and Los Angeles will play Game 6 on Friday in Los Angeles.
The Jazz trailed the entire fourth quarter after making just six baskets in the third quarter. Utah cut the deficit to 100-97 when Mitchell converted a 3-point play with 5:46 left. Jackson answered with back-to-back baskets to squelch a Jazz comeback. Utah could draw no closer after that point.
The same two players also scored in the team’s opening match at Euro 2020 on Sunday, but that ended up being a 3-2 loss to the Netherlands.
Yarmolenko netted from close range in 29th minute after Oleksandr Karavaev’s flick from a corner. He then released Yaremchuk on the right flank in the 34th to double the lead with a low shot past onrushing goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski.
The goals were separated by five minutes. Against the Dutch, they scored only four minutes apart.
The pair equaled coach Andriy Shevchenko’s record of scoring two goals at the European Championship. Shevchenko netted his in a 2-1 victory over Sweden when the country co-hosted Euro 2012, Ukraine’s only previous victory at the continental tournament.
Ezgjan Alioski got the only goal for North Macedonia in the 57th minute when he scored on a rebound after goalkeeper Georgiy Bushchan blocked his penalty shot.
The penalty was awarded after Karavaev brought down North Macedonia striker Goran Pandev, who was aiming for a rebound after Bushchan pushed a shot from Aleksandar Trajkovski onto the woodwork.
Ruslan Malinovskyi later had a penalty saved by Dimitrievski on the other
end. It was awarded for a handball following a free kick after a video review.
Ukraine now have three points in Group C while North Macedonia have zero and are facing elimination from
the tournament.
Ukraine are appearing in their third European Championship and has never progressed out of the group stage. The team will remain in Bucharest for their final group match against Austria while North Macedonia will travel Amsterdam to face the Netherlands.
North Macedonia is playing at their first major tournament. The team lost to Austria 3-1 in their opening game.
Referee Andres Rapallini of Argentina was in charge of the game at the National Arena with linesmen Juan Pablo Belatti and Diego Bonfa assisting. They were taking part in the European tournament amid an exchange with South American soccer body CONMEBOL.
A Spanish refereeing crew will take charge of a Copa America match between Chile and Bolivia on Friday.
Italy 3, Switzerland 0
In Rome, the wingers sprint forward like Ferraris. The midfielders are just as capable at scoring as the forwards. And the reserves look like starters.
A new-look Italy are impressing with its offensive flair at the European Championship.
Midfielder Manuel Locatelli scored two goals and the Azzurri beat Switzerland 3-0 to become the first team to reach the last 16 at Euro 2020, and they did it with a game to spare.
They also did it with their 10th consecutive victory.
As usual - and perhaps the only characteristic carried on from Italy teams of the past - the defense was impenetrable.
It’s quite a turnaround for a team that failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup.
Italy extended their unbeaten streak to 29 matches - one shy of the team record - and kept their 10th clean sheet in that run.
Mancini, however, suggested that Italy still trail France, Portugal and Belgium on the list of tournament favorites.
Locatelli’s first goal came following a textbook exchange with Sassuolo teammate Domenico Berardi midway through the first half. His second came with a long, low shot shortly after the break that left Switzerland goalkeeper Yann Sommer immobile.
Ciro Immobile added the third with another long-range effort in the 89th for his second score of the tournament.
Giorgio Chiellini had a goal waved off by video review early in the match because of a handball. Then the Italy captain exited with a left thigh injury.
Italy lead Group A with a six points after overwhelming Turkey 3-0 in the tournament opener. Wales are next with four points earlier after beating Turkey 2-0 in Baku.
Switzerland have one point and Turkey has zero.
Locatelli’s first goal was an offensive masterclass.
He started it off with a long pass from within Italy’s half to Berardi streaking down the right flank. Berardi then cut inside and crossed back to the onrushing Locatelli, who tapped in from close range.