NY Knicks, Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando Magic reach NBA Cup quarter-finals

LOS ANGELES – The New York Knicks and Milwaukee Bucks advanced to the knockout phase of the NBA Cup with emphatic victories on Dec 3, with the Knicks hammering Orlando 121-106 in a blowout that still allowed the Magic to grab a quarter-final berth.

At Madison Square Garden, New York dominated in the battle to finish unbeaten and win East Group A, overpowering a Magic team who came in with the third-rated defence in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau hailed a team effort for the victory.

“I loved how unselfish we were,” he said. “And I thought we made great reads.

“When we got to the paint, just making the extra pass and then creating the right space... When you do that, everyone finds rhythm, you’re finding good shots, you’re creating good shots for each other. That’s everyone working together, and I think that’s important.”

Karl-Anthony Towns scored 23 points and grabbed 15 rebounds, Jalen Brunson added 21 points and Mikal Bridges scored 19 for the Knicks. O.G. Anunoby and Miles McBride scored 18 apiece, while Josh Hart had a triple-double of 11 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists.

The offensive play was well spread out across the team, which pleased Thibodeau.

On the other side, Franz Wagner scored 30 to lead Orlando, who were assured of advancing so long as they did not lose by 37 points or more.

The Magic saw their deficit hit that number in the third quarter but clawed back to grab the East wildcard berth on points differential over the NBA champions Boston Celtics, who also finished group play 3-1.

Boston, the pre-tournament favourites, and the Hawks had tied for the best record in East Group C (3-1), but the Hawks earned the tiebreaker with their 117-116 win over Boston on Nov 12.

Orlando jumped to a quick eight-point lead but the Knicks, needing a victory to advance, put together an 11-0 scoring run to grab a 17-14 advantage on the way to a 36-27 lead after one quarter and never trailed again.

Asked what got away from his team after the good early start, Magic coach Jamahl Mosley was very precise in his answer when he spoke on NBA.com.

“The basketball,” he said. “Sixteen turnovers for 32 points. That’s what happened. We coughed it up, gave them easy baskets. It’s hard to win a game when you turn the ball over 16 times for 32 points. You are just giving points away. They got all easy baskets in those situations.”

In the quarter-finals, the Magic will visit the Bucks, while the Knicks will host the Hawks. 

In Detroit, Milwaukee drained 23 three-pointers on the way to a 128-107 victory over the Pistons in a battle of East Group B leaders that saw the hosts eliminated.

Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 28 points with seven rebounds and eight assists and Damian Lillard scored 27 points for the Bucks, who have won seven straight games.

Antetokounmpo made 10 of 11 shots from the floor and sat out the entire fourth quarter. Lillard drilled five three-pointers and played only the first few minutes of the fourth.

Milwaukee had seized control early, connecting on 69.2 per cent of their shots in the first half – including 15 of 21 from three-point range.

“I thought our ball movement was unbelievable,” Bucks coach Doc Rivers said. “We just kept finding open guys, played unselfish basketball.”

The quarter-finals of the in-season tournament will be held on Dec 10 and 11, with the semi-finals on Dec 14 in Las Vegas, where the final will be held on Dec 17.

Group-stage games count as regular-season ones and the Cleveland Cavaliers, eliminated from the Cup, easily improved their league-leading record to 19-3 with a 118-87 win over the Washington Wizards (2-17) – who dropped their 15th straight.

Evan Mobley and Donovan Mitchell scored 19 points each for the Cavs, who had seven players reach double figures. AFP