Kevin Durant leads Nets to 109-102 victory win over Magic

On Monday, Kevin Durant led the Brooklyn Nets to a 109-102 victory over the Orlando Magic. He scored 45 points in the game.

The Nets faced an early challenge from the Magic, who led by ten points in the first quarter. They led by one at halftime, then Durant exploded in the third quarter, scoring 19 points, blocking two shots and stealing a pass as the Nets took 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.

Durant scored 17 points in the first half, giving Brooklyn a 52-51 lead heading into the third quarter. He went eight for nine for 19 points in the third quarter.

With 7:41 left in the third quarter, Durant broke a 60-all tie with a pair of shots during an 8-0 run that helped the Nets establish a 68-60 lead. He later launched a 10-0 run down the stretch with seven points and a block, giving the Nets an 87-76 lead going into the fourth quarter.

Durant shot 19 of 24 from the floor and recorded seven rebounds and five assists. He said his team had been through a lot and was delighted with the win that improved them to 11-11.

“We’ve been through a lot so far,” the All-Star forward 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.”

The Nets had just fired coach Steve Nash following a 1-5 start. The win also came amid Kyrie Irving’s scandal of sharing a link to an anti-semitic film on social media.

Durant was not the only one who scored 40+ points on Monday. Devin Booker recorded 44 points to lead the Phoenix Suns to a 122-117 victory over the Sacramento Kings, while Washington Wizards Kristaps Porzingis posted 41 points in a 142-127 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.