The Toronto Raptors secured the inaugural spot in the NBA Cup quarterfinals on Friday night, rolling past the Washington Wizards 119-89 at Scotiabank Arena.
The 30-point victory extended Toronto’s winning streak to six games and lifted the club to 11-5 overall. Washington slipped to 1-14.
With the win—and Cleveland’s triumph over Indiana—Toronto wrapped up the No. 1 seed in East Group A. The Raptors are 3-0 in group play, own a plus-53 point differential and hold head-to-head tiebreakers against both the Cavaliers and Atlanta Hawks.
Toronto broke the game open by pouring in a franchise-record 48 points in the third quarter. Brandon Ingram paced the offense with 24 points, eight rebounds and six assists. RJ Barrett also scored 24 and collected eight boards, while Scottie Barnes posted 23 points and three steals. Sandro Mamukelashvili added 23 points in 21 minutes, and Immanuel Quickley finished with 17 points and seven assists without committing a turnover.
“I think there’s a lot more to come,” Mamukelashvili said. “I’m getting comfortable being me.”
Head coach Darko Rajakovic told reporters the team’s goal is to earn the right to host a quarterfinal contest as the tournament shifts toward Las Vegas.
According to Sportsnet’s Michael Grange, 13 of the 16 teams that reached the knockout stage during the past two seasons later qualified for the NBA playoffs, while the remaining three advanced to the play-in round—an encouraging trend for a Toronto squad seeking its first postseason appearance since 2021-22.
Source: Hoops Wire
