Raptors cruise into Tipoff tourney quarterfinals

He finished with 76 points, one short of the mark set by Blazer5's Nidal "Mama Im Dat Man" Nasser last month. The Cavs won Group 7 with a 3-1 mark, sweeping the T-Wolves 74-69 and 68-56, then losing 61-32 to Wizards District Gaming before beating the Wizards 59-53.

Raptors Uprising GC, the runaway leaders in the NBA 2K League's regular season, maintained their form Wednesday while opening play in The Tipoff tournament. The Raptors swept two-game series from Blazer5 Gaming (73-58 and 93-65) and Lakers Gaming (105-59 and 91-53) to cruise to a 4-0 mark in Group 6. Kenneth "Kenny Got Work" Hailey led the Raptors, averaging 39.8 points and 10 assists, with a high game of 58 points against the Lakers.

The last four quarterfinal places were claimed Wednesday by the Raptors, the Gen.G Tigers of Shanghai, Cavs Legion GC, and Bucks Gaming. The seven group winners as well as the group runner-up with the best record advanced to the single-elimination playoffs, which begin Thursday. All playoff matches will be best-of-three, including the final on Friday.

Gen.G joined the Raptors in producing a perfect mark in Group 6 but finished in second place on a point-differential tiebreaker. The Tigers topped Blazer5 95-80 and 94-69, then dumped the Lakers 79-60 and 87-58. In Gen.G's second game against the Lakers, Dhwan "ShiftyKaii" White just missed setting the NBA 2K League single-game scoring record for a regulation contest. He finished with 76 points, one short of the mark set by Blazer5's Nidal "Mama Im Dat Man" Nasser last month.

The Cavs won Group 7 with a 3-1 mark, sweeping the T-Wolves 74-69 and 68-56, then losing 61-32 to Wizards District Gaming before beating the Wizards 59-53. William "Strainer" Morales led the Cavs with averages of 27.5 points and 6.3 assists while teammate Timothy "oLARRY" Anselimo averaged 13.3 points and 14 rebounds per game.

The last playoff spot came down to the final game in Group 5, which saw Bucks Gaming nip Knicks Gaming 66-61. The Bucks won the earlier matchup between the teams 89-79 after splitting with Heat Check Gaming. The Heat beat the Bucks 81-69, but the Bucks bounced back for a 94-68 win. The Knicks opened their tournament action with a sweep of the Heat, 89-64, and 88-73.

Reginald "Regg" Nash was the Bucks' top offensive performer, contributing 37 points and 8.8 assists per game. The $160,000 event featured all 23 of the league's teams divided into seven groups for pool play on Tuesday (Groups 1 through 4) and Wednesday (Groups 5 through 7).

Groups 1 through 5 each had three teams, with each team playing the other teams in the group twice. Groups 6 and 7 each had four teams, and each team opposed two other teams in the group twice. The Thursday quarterfinal matchups are:

--Group 1 champion Pistons GT vs. Group 2 champion Jazz Gaming --Group 3 champion Grizz Gaming vs. Group 4 Kings Guard Gaming

--Group 5 champion Bucks Gaming vs. Group 6 champion Raptors Uprising GC --Group 7 champion Cavs Legion GC vs. wild-card winner Gen.G Tigers of Shanghai

The Tipoff tournament was scheduled for March 24-28 before the coronavirus pandemic put the beginning of the season on hold. The NBA 2K League finally began action on May 3, and six weeks of remote play were completed before the season was paused for The Tipoff. The tournament champion will receive $70,000. The runner-up will get $50,000, and the two losing semifinalists will each receive $20,000.

The Tipoff is airing live on ESPN2 nightly, starting at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday and Friday. All matches are available on ESPN's digital platforms as well as the NBA 2K League's YouTube and Twitch channels. Following The Tipoff, NBA 2K League regular-season play will resume next week with remote action continuing at least through the end of Week 11 (July 14-17).

NBA 2K League Tipoff groups Group 1

T1. Pistons GT, 2-2 (won group on tiebreaker) T1. NetsGC, 2-2

T1. 76ers GC, 2-2 Group 2

1. Jazz Gaming, 3-1 2. Mavs Gaming, 2-2

3. Celtics Crossover Gaming, 1-3 Group 3

1. Grizz Gaming, 3-1 2. Warriors Gaming Squad, 2-2

3. Pacers Gaming, 1-3 Group 4

1. Kings Guard Gaming, 3-1 2. Magic Gaming, 2-2

3. Hawks Talon GC, 1-3 Group 5

1. Bucks Gaming, 3-1 2. Knicks Gaming, 2-2

3. Heat Check Gaming, 1-3 Group 6

T1. Raptors Uprising GC, 4-0 T1. Gen.G Tigers of Shanghai, 4-0 (earned wild card)

T3. Blazer5 Gaming, 0-4 T3. Lakers Gaming, 0-4

Group 7 1. Cavs Legion GC, 3-1

T2. Wizards District Gaming, 2-2 T2. Hornets Venom GT, 2-2

4. T-Wolves Gaming, 1-3