DURANT’S 45 FUELS NETS VICTORY OVER MAGIC; PACERS STUN LAKERS
Kevin Durant scored a season-high 45 points to power Brooklyn to a 109-102 NBA victory over the Orlando Magic on Monday that kept the Nets trending in the right direction.
The Nets were up by one at halftime, and Durant erupted in the third quarter, scoring 19 points, blocking two shots and coming up with a steal in the period as the Nets seized control.
“Teammates set great screens for me, the paint was opened up because we were spaced off properly and I was able to knock some shots down,” Durant said after the game.
It’s been a rocky season for Brooklyn, who had just sacked coach Steve Nash in the wake of a 1-5 start when star guard Kyrie Irving was embroiled in controversy after posting a link to an antisemitic film on social media.
Durant, who was a ruthlessly efficient 19 of 24 from the floor and also had seven rebounds and five assists, was delighted to see them put together back-to-back victories and move to 11-11 for the season.
“We’ve been through a lot so far,” he said. “Getting to .500 is a definite goal of ours the last couple of weeks—we were right on the cusp. We just want to keep progressing.”
Durant’s was just one of the 40-point performances on Monday as Devin Booker poured in 44 to lead the Phoenix Suns to a 122-117 victory over the Kings in Sacramento and Washington Wizards center Kristaps Porzingis scored a career-high 41 in a 142-127 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
While the league-leading Boston Celtics romped to victory again, leading wire-to-wire in a 140-105 win over the Charlotte Hornets, the Philadelphia 76ers erased a 16-point deficit to beat the Atlanta Hawks 104101 in star center Joel Embiid’s return from injury.
Indiana rookie Andrew Nembhard drained a buzzer-beating three-pointer to give the Pacers a thrilling 116-115 victory over the Lakers in Los Angeles.
The Lakers looked headed to a third straight victory when they led 101-84 with 9:59 to play.
But the Pacers kept coming, knotting it at 113-113 on Tyrese Haliburton’s driving layup with 39.8 seconds remaining.
Lakers superstar LeBron James—who rolled his ankle in the first quarter but returned to action after a trip to the locker room—responded with a layup of his own to make it 115-113.
But when Myles Turner missed a three-pointer on the Pacers’ ensuing possession the Lakers couldn’t corral the rebound. Haliburton grabbed it and fired to Nembhard who drilled the game-winner.