Brandon Ingram and RJ Barrett scored 24 points each as the Toronto Raptors dominated the visiting Washington Wizards 140-110 on Friday for their sixth straight win.
The Raptors improved to 3-0 in the NBA Cup group stage and clinched a spot in the knockout rounds, being the first team to do so.
Scottie Barnes scored 18 of his 23 points in the second half for the Raptors, who have won 10 of 11. Reserve Sandro Mamukelashvili also had 23 points.
CJ McCollum scored 20 points for the Wizards, who are 0-2 in the NBA Cup and have lost 13 straight overall. The franchise record is a 16-game losing streak, done four times.
Cavaliers 120, Pacers 109
Donovan Mitchell scored 32 points and Darius Garland had 20 points and seven assists in his first game since Nov. 10, powering Cleveland to a win over visiting Indiana in an NBA Cup matchup.
Garland played 27 minutes and made 3 of 4 3-point attempts and 7 of 7 free throws in his return from a five-game absence caused by a toe injury. The two-time All-Star point guard scored 13 in the second quarter when Cleveland went ahead for good.
Andrew Nembhard scored a career-high 32 points with eight assists for the Pacers, who also received 26 points and nine rebounds from Pascal Siakam. The Cavaliers are 2-1 in East Group A, and Indiana is 0-2.
Thunder 144, Jazz 112
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points to lead Oklahoma City past Utah in NBA Cup play at Salt Lake City.
The Thunder extended their winning streak to eight and have won 16 of their first 17. They are 2-0 in the West Group A, while the Jazz were eliminated at 0-3. Oklahoma City got 16 points off the bench for Isaiah Joe and 15 from Jaylin Williams.
The Jazz, who had an early 18-point lead, were led by 20 points from Keyonte George, 19 from Lauri Markkanen and a season-high 18 from Kyle Filipowski.
Trail Blazers 127, Warriors 123
Rookie Caleb Love capped a season-best 26-point performance with two key late 3-pointers and Portland put itself in position for advancement in the NBA Cup with a victory over Golden State in San Francisco.
Deni Avdija also put up 26 points and Donovan Clingan chipped in with 22 points and 10 rebounds as Portland moved to 2-1 in West Group C, good for a first-place tie with the Denver Nuggets with just one game to play. Toumani Camara added 20 points for the Trail Blazers, who defeated Denver in an earlier NBA Cup game.
Stephen Curry connected on nine 3-pointers in a 38-point effort for the Warriors, who were back home after a 3-3 road trip. Jimmy Butler III and Brandin Podziemski finished with 20 points apiece.
Nets 113, Celtics 105
Michael Porter Jr. scored 33 points and Nic Claxton recorded his first career triple-double, fueling visiting Brooklyn to a victory over Boston to salvage a split of their home-and-home series.
Porter sank 13 of 21 shots from the floor — including 4 of 6 from 3-point range — to extend his career-best run of games with at least 20 points to eight in a row. He scored 16 points in the fourth quarter.
Brooklyn, which avenged its 113-99 home court setback on Tuesday, improved to 1-2 in NBA Cup Group B play. The Celtics, in turn, fell to 1-2. Jaylen Brown paced Boston with 26 points, and Anfernee Simons scored 23.
Nuggets 112, Rockets 109
Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray recorded double-doubles as Denver snapped host Houston’s five-game winning streak.
Jokic paired 34 points with 10 rebounds while Murray added 26 points and 10 assists as the Nuggets won for the ninth time in 10 games. Jokic, who added nine assists, scored 18 points on 6-of-7 shooting in the third quarter.
Jabari Smith Jr. paired 21 points with 11 rebounds before sending Jokic to the line with his sixth foul in the loss. Reed Sheppard scored 27 points and nailed five 3-pointers off the bench for the Rockets, who are 1-2 in West Group C. The Nuggets are 2-1.
Mavericks 118, Pelicans 115
Rookie Cooper Flagg scored 12 of his season-best 29 points in the fourth quarter and also had seven rebounds and five assists to lead Dallas to a victory over visiting New Orleans in NBA Cup play.
PJ Washington added 24 points, and Max Christie scored a season-best 23 as the Mavericks won for just the third time in the past 12 games. Dallas improved to 1-2 in West Group B, while New Orleans fell to 0-3 and was eliminated from any chance of advancing.
Trey Murphy III scored 25 points, and Zion Williamson added 22 for the Pelicans, who lost their eighth consecutive game. Jeremiah Fears had 21 points and seven rebounds while Derik Queen registered 20 points and 11 assists for New Orleans.
Suns 114, Timberwolves 113
Collin Gillespie had a season-high 20 points including the game-winner with 6.4 seconds remaining and host Phoenix overcame an eight-point deficit in the final 1:09 to beat Minnesota in an NBA Cup game.
Dillon Brooks had 22 points and four threes and Mark Williams had 19 points and eight rebounds for the Suns, who improved to 2-0 in West Group A in Cup play and have won nine of 11 overall.
Anthony Edwards had 41 points and five 3-pointers and Julius Randle had 20 points for the Timberwolves, who had overcome an 18-point deficit and seemed in control before falling apart in the final moments. Minnesota is 2-1 in West Group A.
Heat 143, Bulls 107
Kel’el Ware posted a double-double of 20 points and 14 rebounds and Norman Powell scored 19 points as Miami routed host Chicago in NBA Cup play.
Miami led by as many as 41 points, backed by a plus-14 rebounding effort that contributed to a 26-12 edge in second-chance points. Bam Adebayo added 18 points for the Heat, who have won three straight games overall and are 2-1 in East Group C.
Ayo Dosunmu paced the Bulls with 23 points with Josh Giddey scoring 19 14. The Bulls committed 18 turnovers while slipping to 1-2 in East Group C.
–Field Level Media
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