Friday night’s NBA slate doubled as a full night of Emirates NBA Cup group play, and it delivered: a wire-to-wire blowout in San Antonio, a historic big-man performance in Houston, a one-point thriller in Los Angeles and a franchise first in New Orleans.
Here is what happened on November 13, with every final score.
Spurs keep rolling: 11 in a row
The San Antonio Spurs look like the hottest team in basketball. They beat the Golden State Warriors 123-85 for their 11th straight win, and according to NBA.com, they led wire to wire, with their biggest lead reaching 43 points.
Stephon Castle led the way with 32 points and hit five 3-pointers. Victor Wembanyama didn’t need to do much, finishing with 12 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in just 20 minutes. Keldon Johnson added 18 off the bench. San Antonio improved to 11-2, per ESPN’s scoreboard, while Golden State fell to 8-5.
Sengun joins Hakeem and Yao
In Houston, Alperen Sengun was close to unstoppable. He scored 43 points with 12 rebounds and five assists on 70% shooting as the Rockets beat the Utah Jazz 125-118.
NBA.com notes that Sengun became just the third player in Rockets history to post at least 40 points, 10 rebounds and five assists on 70% or better shooting, joining Hakeem Olajuwon and Yao Ming. Houston is now 10-3.
There was a bright spot for Utah, too. Rookie Darryn Peterson scored 20 or more points for a fifth straight game, the first Jazz rookie to do that since Donovan Mitchell and the first teenager in franchise history to manage it.
Clippers edge the Thunder by one
The closest game of the night came in Inglewood, where the LA Clippers beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 113-112. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 40 points, but Darius Garland and the Clippers held on for their first win of NBA Cup group play.
Pacers survive the Knicks
The Indiana Pacers got their first Cup win by knocking off the defending NBA Cup champion New York Knicks, 106-104. Every Pacers starter scored in double figures, and Aaron Nesmith had 18 points and seven rebounds.
It got tense late. After Pascal Siakam missed two free throws that could have sealed it, Mikal Bridges cut the lead to two. With a chance to send the game to overtime, Karl-Anthony Towns missed a jumper and Indiana escaped.
Around the league
- Magic 107, Bucks 99: Franz Wagner scored 35 points with nine rebounds and 12 assists, his fourth straight game with 30 or more, and Desmond Bane added 21. Milwaukee fell to 1-12.
- Heat 133, Cavaliers 121: Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo each scored 37 as Miami earned its first Cup win.
- Bulls 125, Hawks 117 (OT): Norman Powell scored 33 and Josh Giddey had 15 points, 10 rebounds and 14 assists as Chicago won in overtime.
- Grizzlies beat the Pelicans 142-111 on ESPN’s scoreboard. NBA.com says 10 Memphis players scored in double figures, a franchise first.
- Trail Blazers 120, Kings 107: Deni Avdija posted 34 points, six rebounds and four assists as Portland moved to 9-3.
Friday’s final scores
- Pacers 106, Knicks 104
- Magic 107, Bucks 99
- Heat 133, Cavaliers 121
- Bulls 125, Hawks 117 (OT)
- Grizzlies 142, Pelicans 111
- Rockets 125, Jazz 118
- Spurs 123, Warriors 85
- Trail Blazers 120, Kings 107
- Clippers 113, Thunder 112
What it means
It’s still early, but the Western Conference is taking shape around a few clear trends. The Spurs, built around Wembanyama and a deep young supporting cast, are winning comfortably even when their superstar plays limited minutes. The Rockets are 10-3 and have a frontcourt anchor playing at an All-Star level. And the Thunder, despite another huge night from Gilgeous-Alexander, showed they can be beaten in a close game.
In the East, Miami and Orlando both have winning momentum, while the Bucks’ 1-12 start is becoming one of the season’s biggest storylines.
NBA Cup group play continues through November, with every game counting toward both the regular-season standings and a spot in the knockout rounds.
Image: OAKA Basketball Arena in December 2024 by Skywalkerr42 via Wikimedia Commons, CC0 1.0
