The NBA Cup closed the group stage of its second edition this Tuesday and will have the following matches in the quarterfinals: Oklahoma City Thunder-Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets-Golden State Warriors, Milwaukee Bucks-Orlando Magic and New York Knicks-Atlanta Hawks.
The big surprises are the absences in the final phase of the Cleveland Cavaliers, the team that is in the most shape since the beginning of the season; the Boston Celtics, the last NBA champion or the Los Angeles Lakers, who will not be able to defend the title won in the first edition of the NBA Cup.
The Warriors, Thunder and Rockets became champions of their groups in the West while the Mavericks were left with the wild card of that conference. In the East, the Bucks, Knicks and Hawks finished first in their groups and the Magic took the wild card.
Nuggets, 119 – Warriors, 115
The Warriors (12-8) have lost five in a row, succumbing to a monumental Nikola Jokic, who dazzled with 38 points (14 of 24 on field goals), 10 rebounds, 6 assists and 5 steals.
The Nuggets (11-8) have won their last eight games against Golden State and turned the game around with a masterful comeback after trailing by 11 points with 6.13 left and thanks to a 10-0 run in the last two minutes and 32 seconds.
Stephen Curry (24 points, 7 rebounds and 11 assists) could not avoid the final disaster of the Warriors who, despite their unfortunate outcome, went to the quarterfinals as champions of Group C of the West.
Mavericks, 121 – Grizzlies, 116
Dallas also celebrated an epic comeback and qualified for the quarterfinals with the wild card of the West after defeating the Grizzlies who led by 8 points with 3.34 left but conceded an 18-5 run to close the match.
With two decisive triples from Spencer Dinwiddie and one from PJ Washington in the final stretch, the Mavericks (14-8) also added their fifth straight win. Luka Doncic led Dallas with 37 points (11 of 22 from the field) and 12 rebounds.
Ja Morant (31 points) was the best of the Grizzlies (14-8) who saw their streak of six consecutive wins ended and in which the Spanish Santi Aldama stood out with 15 points, 8 rebounds and 3 assists as a reserve.
Thunder, 133 – Jazz, 106
The Thunder (16-5) did their homework, overwhelming some poor Jazz with five straight losses (4-17) to become champions of Group B of the West. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (26 points, 6 rebounds and 7 assists) and Jalen Williams (28 points) led Oklahoma without having to play in the fourth quarter.
Knicks, 121 – Magic, 106
The Knicks qualified as first in Group A of the East after crushing the Magic who lost by 37 points in the third quarter, a result that if it had been maintained at the end would have given the ‘wild card’ of that conference to the Boston Celtics.
With a powerful 8-2 in their last ten games (13-8 balance), the Knicks offered a recital led by Dominican Karl-Anthony Towns (23 points and 15 rebounds), Jalen Brunson (21 points) and Josh Hart (triple-double with 11 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists).
In Orlando (15-8), which lost after six straight wins, Franz Wagner had 30 points and 6 assists and his brother Moritz Wagner had 20 points and 12 rebounds.
Pistons, 107 – Bucks, 128
Seven consecutive victories and fourth place as champions of Group B and as the best team in the East. This is how shocking the reaction of the Bucks (11-9) has been, who after a disastrous start to the season have recovered with an impressive 9-1 in their last ten games.
Giannis Antetokounmpo excelled against the Pistons with 28 points (a huge 10 of 11 from the field, 8 of 12 from the free throw), 7 rebounds and 8 assists in 28 minutes without having to step on the court in the final quarter. Damian Lillard backed him up with 27 points (5 of 11 on triples) and 5 assists as the Bucks went 15 of 21 on triples at halftime (23 of 41 at the end).
In the rest of the games, the Cleveland Cavaliers crushed the Washington Wizards in ruins with 15 straight losses (118-87), the Phoenix Suns beat the San Antonio Spurs (104-93) but both were left out of the quarterfinals – in addition, Kevin Durant was injured, who sprained his left ankle in the second quarter – and the Philadelphia 76ers chained two consecutive victories for the first time this season, defeating the Charlotte Hornets (104-110). In addition, the Toronto Raptors beat the Indiana Pacers (122-111), the Sacramento Kings defeated the Houston Rockets (120-111) and the Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Portland Trail Blazers (127-105).
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