Andrew Bogut literally threw the game away as his high-flying Golden State Warriors lost 110-108 to the Brooklyn Nets in the NBA.
With 20 seconds left and the scores tied at 108-108 on Monday night, Australian centre Bogut threw a pass out of bounds when looking for sharp-shooting guard Steph Curry.
It handed the Nets possesion and allowed them to run down the clock before former Warrior Jarrett Jack nailed the winning two-point jumper.
The loss was the latest sub-par performance for the Western Conference leaders who have struggled to replicate their hot pre-season form since the recent All-Star break.
Bogut's crucial late error was no reflection of his contribution as he was a major factor in the Warriors being in the game at that stage.
His 16 points, all in the first half - his best game tally for the season - six rebounds and three blocked shots boosted the Warriors as guards Curry and Klay Thompson struggled to find their range.
All Star guard Thompson had a horror night, hitting just 3 of 17 from the field and one of nine from beyond the arc.
Bogut even got a rare alley-oop dunk from Curry, but at the other end of the floor picked up a flagrant foul for pushing Nets centre Mason Plumlee.
The loss dropped the Warriors record to 46-12 and second in the NBA behind the Atlanta Hawks, who are 47-12 on top of the Eastern Conference.
Brooklyn's win moved them above Indiana into eighth spot in the East with a record of 25-33.
The Nets are still one win behind the resurgent Miami Heat, who held down seventh in the East with a 115-98 win over the visiting Phoenix Suns.
Former Suns guard Goran Dragic haunted his old team by dropping 21 points in the win for Miami.
In the west both the LA Clippers and Dallas Mavericks tightened their grip on post-season action.
The Clippers beat the lowly Minnesota Timberwolves 110-105, with Chris Paul scoring 26 points and giving 14 assists and Dallas defeated the increasingly-desperate New Orleans Pelicans 102-93.
Earlier the Toronto Raptors snapped a five-game losing streak with a comfortable 114-103 win over Philadelphia, with Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan scoring 35 points in the win.
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