Giannis Antetokounmpo racked up 28 points, eight assists and seven rebounds and the visiting Milwaukee Bucks advanced in the NBA Cup with a 128-107 victory over the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday night.
Damian Lillard had 27 points and five assists for the Bucks, who won all four of their games in East Group B and advanced to a home quarterfinal game against the Orlando Magic on Dec. 10.
The Bucks also continued their recent dominance over the Pistons. They have won 11 in a row over their Central Division rival and 23 of the last 24.
Cade Cunningham led Detroit with 23 points and six assists, while Tobias Harris supplied 16 points and five rebounds. Detroit finished 3-1 in NBA Cup group play but didn’t advance to the knockout rounds.
Clippers 127, Trail Blazers 105
Norman Powell scored 30 points and James Harden added 23 to go along with seven assists as Los Angeles extended its home winning streak to nine games by beating Portland in Inglewood, Calif.
Amir Coffey scored 19 points as the Clippers avenged one of their four consecutive home losses immediately after their new $2 billion arena opened. Powell has averaged 29 points in two games since returning from a hamstring injury.
Deandre Ayton scored 16 points for the Trail Blazers, who lost for the fourth time in their past five games overall and fell for the seventh time in their past eight road games.
Kings 120, Rockets 111
Domantas Sabonis had a team-high 27 points, DeMar DeRozan poured 13 of his 16 points into a third-quarter eruption and host Sacramento dashed Houston’s hopes of being the West’s top seed in next week’s NBA Cup quarterfinals.
De’Aaron Fox added 22 points for Sacramento, which won for the first time in its four NBA Cup games. Malik Monk posted 17 points and a game-high 12 assists. Sabonis also collected seven rebounds and four assists.
Jalen Green scored a game-high 28 points and Alperen Sengun had 24 for Houston, which will host Golden State in a quarterfinal game on Dec. 11.
76ers 110, Hornets 104
Paul George poured in 29 points to match his season high and Tyrese Maxey notched the final 11 Philadelphia points as the 76ers survived in Charlotte.
Maxey ended up with 10 of his 21 points on free throws as Philadelphia won consecutive games for the first time this season despite squandering a 19-point second-half lead. Jared McCain had 17 points off the 76ers’ bench.
Brandon Miller racked up 34 points and Nick Richards was good for 22 points and 14 rebounds, but the Hornets took their sixth straight loss.
Nuggets 119, Warriors 115
Nikola Jokic scored 15 of his 38 points in the fourth quarter and host Denver rallied from an 11-point deficit in the final 6:13 to beat Golden State.
The Warriors won the NBA Cup’s West Group C with a 3-1 mark to advance. The Nuggets finished 2-2 and were eliminated.
Jokic also had 10 rebounds, six assists and five steals while Michael Porter Jr. scored 22 points for Denver. The Warriors, who played without forward Draymond Green (calf), lost their fifth straight game despite getting 24 points and 11 assists from Stephen Curry.
Mavericks 121, Grizzlies 116
Dallas overcame a 15-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat visiting Memphis behind Luka Doncic’s 37 points and 12 rebounds and Dereck Lively III’s 17 points and 11 rebounds.
With the win, Dallas finished 3-1 in the NBA Cup’s West Group C, made the quarterfinals as the wild-card team and will play at Oklahoma City on Tuesday. Memphis wound up 1-3 and was eliminated.
The Mavericks, who have won five in a row, also got 18 points, eight rebounds and seven assists from P.J. Washington and key back-to-back 3-pointers in the closing minutes from Spencer Dinwiddie (16 points). Ja Morant scored a season-high 31 points for the Grizzlies, who had their season-best six-game winning streak snapped.
Knicks 121, Magic 106
Karl-Anthony Towns posted team-high totals of 23 points and 15 rebounds as host New York beat Orlando to clinch the NBA Cup’s East Group A title and an automatic bid to the quarterfinals.
Josh Hart amassed 11 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists for the Knicks, who finished 4-0 in Group A play and will host the Atlanta Hawks on Dec. 11. Jalen Brunson had 21 points as New York won for the eighth time in 10 games overall.
Franz Wagner scored 30 points and Moritz Wagner registered 20 points and 12 rebounds for the Magic (3-1 in Group A play).
Suns 104, Spurs 93
Devin Booker recorded 29 points, nine rebounds and five assists to lead Phoenix to a victory over visiting San Antonio in an NBA Cup game. The Suns finished 3-1 in group play, the Spurs 2-2, and both were eliminated.
The Suns won for the third time in four games despite being without Kevin Durant in the second half. Durant sprained his left ankle in the second quarter. He scored 13 points in 16 1/2 minutes before departing.
Devin Vassell scored 25 points on 10-of-14 shooting off the bench and Stephon Castle added 16 points for the Spurs, who lost for just the second time in seven games.
Cavaliers 118, Wizards 87
Donovan Mitchell and Evan Mobley scored 19 points apiece as Cleveland handed visiting Washington a 15th consecutive defeat.
Seven players scored in double figures for Cleveland, which improved to an NBA-best 19-3. The Cavaliers won their 10th straight meeting with the Wizards.
Jordan Poole, Bub Carrington and Jonas Valanciunas each scored 13 points for the last-place Wizards. Washington is one loss away from matching the worst skid in franchise history.
Thunder 133, Jazz 106
Jalen Williams scored 28 points and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander netted 26 to lead Oklahoma City past visiting Utah in an NBA Cup game.
The Thunder finished 3-1 and in first place in West B Group. The Jazz finished 0-4 in the event and lost their fifth consecutive game overall.
Walker Kessler and Collin Sexton scored 17 points each to lead six Utah players in double digits. Kessler also had 11 rebounds.
Raptors 122, Pacers 111
Scottie Barnes scored a career-best 35 points and added nine assists and six rebounds as Toronto defeated visiting Indiana. The Raptors completed group play in the NBA Cup at 1-3, and the Pacers finished 0-4.
RJ Barrett added 29 points and nine rebounds for the Raptors, who have won two straight games and four consecutive at home. Jakob Poeltl contributed 17 points and 10 rebounds.
Tyrese Haliburton scored 30 points for the Pacers, who have lost three straight games overall and seven in a row on the road.
–Field Level Media
