Bucks, Celtics, Knicks Advance In NBA Cup

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Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 33 points and Damian Lillard added 32 as the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Miami Heat 131-124 on Tuesday, advancing to the knockout rounds of the NBA Cup.

On the final night of the group stage of the first season of the NBA Cup, the Bucks took the Group B crown 4-0 and became the top seed in the Eastern Conference.

In another game on Tuesday, Boston defeated Chicago 124-97 to win Group C and advance, while the New York Knicks, second behind Milwaukee in Group B, beat Charlotte 115-91 to finish 3-1 and advance as a wild card by beating Cleveland.

The Indiana Pacers and Los Angeles Lakers had already clinched their spots in next week’s tournament quarterfinals ahead of next month’s semifinals and final in Las Vegas.

Western Conference games will round out the final eight with Golden State at Sacramento and Houston at Dallas. Sacramento and Houston would advance with a victory.

In New York, Julius Randle scored 25 points and shined with 20 rebounds, while Immanuel Quickley scored 23 points off the bench to power the Knicks past Charlotte.

Brooklyn’s Spencer Dinwiddie had 23 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, while Mikal Bridges added 22 points and 10 rebounds in the home team’s 115-103 victory over Toronto.

Cleveland failed to advance despite a 128-105 home victory over Atlanta.

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