The Steph Show sequel (49 pts, 9 3pm) was even better than the original (46 pts, 5 3pm).
Both award-worthy performances ended in Golden State dubs in San Antonio.
Nov. 15, 2025
Friday Cup Drama: Steph’s 49 helps Dubs edge Spurs, Bucks & Clips win in OT
Win Streaks Endure: Pistons (9 straight) & Wolves (4 straight) now both 2-0 in Cup
Staying Perfect: Luka’s Lakers & Franz’s Magic each improve to 2-0 in Group Play
Big Offense, First Wins: Knicks & Rockets each put up 140 points in 1st Cup wins
Saturday Preview: Kia MVP Ladder’s top four all part of today’s five-game slate
Last night’s scores & today’s slate…
NBA Cup Hub: Get the latest standings, schedule, news and more right here, ahead of next Friday’s next Cup Night.
Saturday’s five-game slate features an NBA TV doubleheader, tipping off with Cleveland hosting Memphis (5 ET | Tap To Watch), followed by the L.A. Lakers visiting Milwaukee (8 ET | Tap To Watch).
1. FRIDAY NIGHT DRAMA: STEPH’S WARRIORS EDGE SPURS, BUCKS & CLIPPERS WIN IN OT
Two nights in San Antonio.
Two 45+ point performances.
Two Golden State wins.
One Steph Curry.
Warriors 109, Spurs 108 (West C): After putting up 46 points and five 3s in Golden State’s win in San Antonio on Wednesday, Curry was even better on Friday – dropping 49 points and nine 3s, both season-highs, to lead the Warriors to back-to-back wins and their first dub of Group Play. | Recap
2nd Half Steph: Curry scored 31 of his points after the half – 17 in the 3rd quarter and 14 in the 4th – and Golden State needed every single one as San Antonio led for most of the 2nd half
Late Rally: Down 10 with 7:45 left, Curry scored 10 straight for Golden State to cut the lead in half. Then, three straight 3s by Gary Payton II and Brandin Podziemski put the Warriors up with 3:37 left, setting up the tight finish
Ice In His Veins: Down one with 10 seconds left, Golden State secured a rebound and got it to Curry, who drew a foul in transition. The all-time leader in free throw percentage (91.2% career) calmly sank both free throws
Last Chance: San Antonio got the ball to De’Aaron Fox, but his fadeaway jumper at the buzzer bounced twice on the rim and missed to seal the Warriors’ win
Historic Feat: Curry’s consecutive 45+ point games marked the 100th instance of such a streak in NBA history – the sixth for Curry and his first since Nov. 2022.
Steph 🤝 MJ: Curry is one of just two players to drop consecutive 45+ point games at age 35 or older. The other: Michael Jordan in 2001. Curry also tied Jordan for the most 40+ point games after turning 30 with his 44th
It’s Gotta Be The Shoes: After the win, Steph discussed his choiceto wear the Nike Kobe 6 “Mambacita” for pregame
Ain’t It Fun: After crediting his teammates’ effort in the win, Steph was asked which role in the Warriors band he played on Friday night
Spurs Standouts: Victor Wembanyama (26 pts, 12 reb, 4 ast, 3 blk) had already extended his block streak to 97 straight games when he had this ridiculous clutch block on Jimmy Butler III in the final minute.
He also delivered a self alley-oop that is must-see from all angles. Fox (24 pts, 10 ast) had his first double-double of the season as the Spurs fell to 1-1 in Cup play.
While Warriors-Spurs was decided in the closing seconds of the 4th quarter, two games on Friday night needed an extra frame (or two) to determine a winner.
Clippers 133, Mavericks 127 (2OT) (West B): James Harden outscored everybody (10 pts) across 2 overtime periods to push LA to 2-0 in Cup play with his 82nd career triple-double (41 pts, 14 reb, 11 ast), playing over 50 minutes for the third time in his career. | Recap
Historic Harden: The Beard sets the record for most triple-doubles in Clippers’ history (8) with LA’s first 40-point triple-double – a mark only Oscar Robertson has reached more times than Harden (17x) in NBA history
Relentless Russell: D’Angelo Russell scored 10 of his team-high 28 points in the 4th quarter, willing in four consecutive game-tying buckets, including the one that forced overtime
Plenty of Game: Ivica Zubac had a season-high 27 points, and Bogdan Bogdanović added season-highs with 5 threes and 21 points for LA. Naji Marshall matched Russell’s 28 points, while Cooper Flagg added 16 in 47 minutes
Bucks 147, Hornets 134 (OT) (East C): It took an extra five minutes, but the Bucks remained unbeaten in Group Play (10-0 all-time, 2-0 in 2025). Kyle Kuzma had his highest-scoring game as a Buck (29 pts, 10 reb, 5 ast) and Giannis Antetokounmpo did it all (25 pts, 18 ast, 7 reb) to lead Milwaukee to the OT win. | Recap
Kon’s Night Not Enough: With 2,000 people in the building to watch him in his hometown, Hornets rookie Kon Knueppel had his best night as a pro, dropping 32 points with four 3s – including the game-tying triple that forced overtime – before Milwaukee owned OT, 18-5
Must-See Slams: Tre Mann rocked the rim for the Hornets in the 2nd quarter before Giannis dropped a clutch hammer in overtime to help seal the win
Giannis Dimes: The Bucks improved to 6-0 all-time when Giannis dishes out at least 15 assists. His 18 dimes tied Cade Cunningham for most in the NBA this season and helped Milwaukee put up the third-most points (147) in any game this season
2. PISTONS, WOLVES EXTEND STREAKS, IMPROVE TO 2-0 IN CUP
Pistons 114, 76ers 105 (East B): With six key rotation players out, including leading scorer Cade Cunningham (hip), Detroit won its NBA-high 9th game in a row, and 2nd straight Cup game, overcoming Tyrese Maxey’s 31 points. | Recap
Next Man Up: Javonte Green (21 pts, 9 reb) is Detroit’s third different leading scorer in as many games, with each posting a career- or season-high
Momentum Swings: Philly started the 2nd half on a 19-2 run, but Daniss Jenkins’ 3rd-quarter buzzer beater (⬆️) spurred a 10-2 run that put Detroit ahead for good
Seizing The Moment: Jenkins has tallied 61 points over his last three games. He had 24 points total in his entire career (12 prior games) before this stretch
Wolves 124, Kings 110 (West A): The Wolves opened the 4th quarter on a 27-9 run – pushing a one-point lead into a 19-point advantage – to earn their 4th straight win and stay perfect in Group Play at 2-0 while handing the Kings their 5th straight loss (0-2 in Cup). | Recap
Wolf Pack: Anthony Edwards (30 pts, 4 ast, 1 must-see slam ⬆️), Julius Randle (26 pts, 11 reb, 5 ast) and Donte DiVincenzo (20 pts, 5 ast, 5 3pm) combined for 76 points to lead six Wolves in double figures
Milestone: Russell Westbrook (13 pts, 14 ast, 10 reb) added to his NBA record triple-double total (205), while becoming the 8th player in NBA history to reach 10,000 assists and joining LeBron James as the only players with 25K points and 10K assists
3. LAKERS, MAGIC STAY UNBEATEN IN GROUP PLAY
Lakers 118, Pelicans 104 (West B): Luka Dončić (24 pts, 7 reb, 12 ast) had 20 points in the 1st half and Austin Reaves (31 pts, 7 ast) paced all five Lakers’ starters in double figures, as Los Angeles led for 46 minutes to stay a perfect 2-0 in Cup play. | Recap
NOLA Duo: Trey Murphy III (35 pts, 7 reb) led the 0-2 Pelicans, with Jeremiah Fears (19 pts, 7 stl) nabbing the most steals by a rookie in over a decade
Magic 105, Nets 98 (East B): Playing without Paolo Banchero (groin), Orlando used an 11-0 run over the final two minutes to outlast Brooklyn and move to 2-0 in Group Play. The Magic are 3-0 since Desmond Bane’s Nov. 10 buzzer-beater. | Recap
Masked Man: Playing through a broken nose, Franz Wagner led Orlando with 25 points (6 reb, 5 ast), nailing two triples to close out Brooklyn
Quick Strike: Michael Porter Jr. (24 pts, 11 reb, career-high 7 ast) sank 3 triples in an 11-point, 6-assist 1st quarter, as Brooklyn led by as many as 16 in the 1st half
4. KNICKS, ROCKETS USE BIG OFFENSE TO EARN FIRST CUP WINS
Knicks 140, Heat 132 (East C): In a shootout featuring 40 3-pointers, Karl-Anthony Towns (39 pts, 11 reb, 6 3pm) and Landry Shamet (career-high 36 pts, 6 3pm) led a team barrage without Jalen Brunson (ankle) for a season-high in points, and first Cup win. | Recap
Dynamic Duo: Towns and Shamet are the first teammates in NBA Cup history, and first this season, to each score 35+ points in the same game
Half KAT: Towns logged 31 points before halftime, joining Joker and Luka as the only players this season with a 30+ point 1st half
Backup Buddies: NY’s 75 bench points are the second-most by a bench this season, with all but three of those 75 coming from Shamet, Jordan Clarkson (24 pts) and Josh Hart (12 pts, 12 reb, 10 ast)
Sharp Shooters: New York hit 20+ 3s (21) for the second time in three games, improving to 16-1 all time when splashing 20+ 3s
Heaters: Norman Powell (season-high 38 pts) matched his career-high with eight 3s to lead Miami, while Jaime Jaquez Jr. (23 pts, 9 reb, 7 ast) was everywhere
Rockets 140, Blazers 116 (West C): Behind a combined 77 points from Kevin Durant (30 pts, +37 in 36 min), Alperen Sengun (25 pts, 10 reb, 9 ast) and Jabari Smith Jr. (22 pts), the Rockets raced past the Blazers in the 2nd half to earn their first Cup win and third straight overall. | Recap
Season High: The Rockets entered the night as the NBA’s 3rd highest scoring team (124.0 ppg) and leaped to 1st (125.5) behind a season-high 140 points
Blazers Best: Deni Avdija (22 pts, 10 reb, 4 ast) paced the Blazers, while Shaedon Sharpe added 19 points and a must-see poster dunk as Portland fell to 1-1 in Cup play
5. MVP LADDER’S TOP 4 HIGHLIGHT 5-GAME SATURDAY
Friday’s Kia MVP Ladder saw a shake-up among the top five early candidates.
⬆️ Nikola Jokić jumped from 3rd to 1st behind a dominant run
⬇️ Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the reigning MVP, dropped from 1st to 2nd
⬇️ Giannis Antetokounmpo also took one step down from 2nd to 3rd
⬆️ Luka Dončić leapfrogged Victor Wembanyama (all 7-foot-4 of him) to take 4th
Today, all four players will be in action, including a head-to-head clash on NBA TV.
Stacy Revere/NBAE via Getty Images
Lakers at Bucks (8 ET, NBA TV): Perennial MVP candidates – Giannis is a two-time winner (2019, 2020) and has finished top five every year since, while Luka had a five-year run of top-eight finishes, reaching as high as 3rd in 2024 – meet for the first time this season.
While Giannis and Luka have varying skillsets, they’ve gotten off to similar dominant starts, setting up only the 5th matchup in the last 45 years between two players averaging 33+ ppg.
Driven To Score: Luka (34.9 ppg in 8 games) and Giannis (33.4 ppg in 10 games) own the NBA’s top two scoring averages, and both rank in the top 12 in points in the paint (Giannis 1st at 23.4), while averaging over 11 drives a game
Nuggets at Wolves (8 ET, LP): Powered by a historic heater from Jokić, the Nuggets bring a six-game win streak into their second matchup of the season with the Wolves – a team that ended Denver’s title defense in 2024 and swept last year’s season series.
How good has Jokić been? Over Denver’s last six games he’s put up video game numbers: 35.8 ppg, 12.0 rpg, 11.0 apg, 73.9% FG, 55.6% 3P.
Joker & Wilt: He’s the only player since Chamberlain to average 35+ on 70% shooting during a six-game win streak
Joker, Luka & Big O: He’s only the third player ever to average a 35+ point triple-double during a six-game win streak, joining Dončić and Oscar Robertson
Zach Beeker/NBAE via Getty Images
Thunder at Hornets (7 ET, LP): Last year’s triple MVP (regular season, West Finals, NBA Finals) has picked up right where he left off – averaging 32.5 points on 52% shooting – as he aims for his fourth straight season of 30+ ppg on 50%+ FG.
Every Single Night: SGA owns sole possession of the 3rd longest streak of 20+ point games in league history with 85 consecutive games and counting
Even Better: During last year’s run to 68 wins and the first title of the OKC era, the Thunder opened the season 11-2 through 13 games and finished with an NBA record +12.9 point differential. This year, they’re 12-1 through 13 with a +15.5 differential