The Phoenix Suns were finally back to full strength on Tuesday night.

The Suns, with both stars Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal back on the court after their respective calf injuries, outperformed the Los Angeles Lakers. They earned a 127-100 victory at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, handing the Lakers their first ever NBA Cup loss.

The Suns have struggled lately without both Durant and Beal available. Durant missed the Suns’ last seven games with a calf strain and Beal missed five straight games with his calf injury. With Durant out, the team came into the game just 1-6 and lost five straight with both guys out of the lineup.

But on Tuesday night, the Suns had no trouble earning the 27-point victory thanks to a massive 22-6 run to end the third quarter, powered largely by Jusuf Nurkic. That third-quarter push led to the Suns suddenly having a 20-point lead early in the fourth quarter.

Durant scored 23 points and six rebounds for the Suns in the win. He also shot 9 of 17 from the field. Beal finished the game with 23 points, shooting 10 of 15 from the field. In the fourth quarter, he chased LeBron James off the backboard for a wild block, which resulted in James returning incredibly slowly to the other end of the court.

Devin Booker led the Suns with 26 points and 10 assists, and Nurkic added 12 points and 12 rebounds. As a team, they also scored 51.5% of their goals from the field.

Anthony Davis led the Lakers with 25 points and 15 rebounds in the loss, which dropped them to 10-7 on the season. James came close to a triple-double with 18 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds.

The Suns and Lakers are now 2-1 in group play with one game to go. The Lakers, who won the inaugural edition of the event last year, will close the opening round with a game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday. The Suns next host the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday. While the Suns have a slight lead in the standings, the group is still very competitive heading into the final.

Bucks survive without Giannis

Giannis Antetokounmpo arrived late for the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night and seemed to surprise everyone, including coach Doc Rivers.

Antetokounmpo had to miss the 106-103 win against the Miami Heat shortly before the start of the game at the Kaseya Center due to knee problems. He completed the shootout and pregame training routine as normal, but then he felt discomfort in his knee. He was considered likely ahead of the game as he recovered from a calf strain.

Despite holding a 20-point lead in the third quarter, the Heat rallied and made it a one-possession game in the final minutes. They also held the Bucks without a field goal in the final two minutes of the game. But a late basket from Tyler Herro missed in the final seconds, allowing the Bucks to sneak away with the 3-point victory.

Damian Lillard took the lead for Milwaukee after a great first-half performance. He dropped 25 of his 37 points in the first 24 minutes and finished the game with 12 assists and eight 3-pointers. Brook Lopez finished the game with 13 points and Bobby Portis added 11 off the bench.

Jimmy Butler led the Heat with 23 points and five assists. Herro finished with 18 points and Terry Rozier added 17 points. The Heat are now 7-8 this season and 1-2 in the NBA Cup.

Antetokounmpo has averaged 32.4 points and 11.9 rebounds while shooting nearly 61% from the field. Tuesday’s win is the second game he has missed this season. While the Bucks were able to eke out a win without him on Tuesday, marking the team’s fifth straight victory and keeping them undefeated in Group B play, they will need him available if they face one in the knockout phase want to make a legitimate run in the NBA Cup.

The Rockets secure the knockout spot

The Rockets almost missed a perfect opportunity to secure a spot in the knockout round on Tuesday night.

But thanks to a late defensive effort and a wild layup from Alperen Sengun, the Rockets are now officially the second team to survive the group stage.

The Rockets defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves 117-111 in overtime at Target Center on Tuesday. Despite blowing a 17-point lead in the second half, Houston held Minnesota scoreless for the final 3:12 of regulation and then took the lead in overtime to win. Sengun also helped fuel this win with a ridiculous reverse layup midway through the quarter, giving them the six-point win.

The Rockets were the only team that had a chance to win on Tuesday. The Golden State Warriors have already secured a spot in the knockout rounds and the New Orleans Pelicans were officially eliminated on Friday. The Timberwolves are now 1-2 in group play.

The Wizards were officially eliminated after losing 127-108 to the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday night. The Wizards took a 0-3 lead in the NBA Cup. The Jazz were also eliminated after losing to the San Antonio Spurs 128-115. The Spurs also hold a 2-1 record in Group B with the Lakers and Suns.

The Bucks’ win over the Heat actually eliminated the Toronto Raptors from the knockout rounds as well. The Raptors didn’t play on Tuesday, but were 0-2 in the NBA Cup and are now officially out of reach.