Harkless scores 27 as Stars outlast Kings to reach Winter Showcase final

Elijah Harkless led the way for the Salt Lake City Stars as they defeated the Stockton Kings 127-123 on Sunday at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida, to advance to Monday's NBA G League Winter Showcase championship game. The back-and-forth contest featured multiple fourth-quarter lead changes before the Stars pulled away to clinch their spot in the final against Raptors 905.

Harkless scored a game-high 27 points to go along with five rebounds and four assists for the Stars (2-0). Salt Lake City established a dominant presence in the paint, with Mo Bamba recording a massive double-double of 17 points and 18 rebounds and Oscar Tshiebwe adding a double-double of 10 points and 15 rebounds. Point guard Sean East II directed the offense effectively, finishing with 21 points and nine assists. Cam McGriff was a critical contributor off the bench, scoring 18 points on 6-of-9 shooting, including four of his five 3-pointers coming in the fourth quarter. John Tonje added 13 points for the Stars.

The Kings (1-1) received a team-high 26 points from Dexter Dennis, who also connected on five 3-pointers. Daeqwon Plowden had a strong all-around game with 22 points and eight rebounds. Devin Carter contributed 22 points, eight rebounds and three assists. DaQuan Jeffries scored 13 points in just nine minutes of action in the first half. Isaiah Stevens finished with 12 points and a team-high seven assists, while Jon Elmore provided 12 points off the bench.

The game was tightly contested throughout, with Stockton taking a 99-94 lead into the fourth quarter. However, Salt Lake City rallied behind the hot shooting of McGriff. A key alley-oop from Harkless to Bamba with 53 seconds remaining extended the Stars' lead to five, and they held on.

Up next: The Stars will face Raptors 905 in Monday's title tilt at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPNU, and the Kings will host the Rip City Remix on Saturday at 8 p.m.

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