Deandre Ayton's last-second alley-oop handed the Phoenix Suns victory and opened up their lead over the Los Angeles Clippers in the Western Conference finals.
The Suns were down with 0.9 seconds remaining when Jae Crowder tossed a high pass that Ayton, the number one draft pick in 2018, seized and hammered home over the top of the Clippers' Ivica Zubac for the 104-103 win.
Paul George grabbed the game by the throat for Los Angeles, with the 31-year-old collecting 26 points including two that gave his side the lead with 31 seconds left for the first time since the third quarter.
Big time bucket. pic.twitter.com/4pHlYhEpd5 — LA Clippers (@LAClippers) June 23, 2021
But George then faltered by missing two free throws as the Suns closed out a franchise-record ninth-straight play-off victory.
Phoenix's Cameron Payne impressed while subbing for Chris Paul and sliced open the Los Angeles defence in the paint repeatedly, with the 26-year-old finishing with a career-high 29 points.
George will be among the Clippers players looking to improve his accuracy – the seven-time All Star was just 10 of 23 from the field and missed his first seven three-point attempts – as Los Angeles prepare to host Game Three on Thursday.
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