With another recital from Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, the Brooklyn Nets chained up their ninth straight win on Monday by beating junior Darius Garland’s Cleveland Cavaliers 125-117, who led the resistance with 46 points.
The Nets, recovering from a disastrous start to the season, claimed third place in the NBA Eastern Conference from the Cavaliers with a record of 22 wins and 12 losses.
Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving each had 32 points and 5 assists and combined for a total of 12 3-pointers.
Off the bench, forward TJ Warren had his best game of the season with 23 goals.
The Nets capitalized on an uninspired night of shooting for All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell, who finished with 15 points and 5/16 from the field.
Young point guard Darius Garland was the one who kept the Cavaliers alive all game, with 46 points that included 5 3-pointers and a string of fantasy plays that got the nearly 20,000 fans at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse to their feet.
The Cavaliers made one last attempt to capture Brooklyn in the final two minutes after Durant went to the bench for his sixth personal foul.
With a Garland on, Cleveland closed within four points (121-117) with 44 seconds left, but Kyrie Irving again put Brooklyn away with two free throws and center Nic Claxton then put up a decisive block on Garland.
The Nets won 14 of their last 15 games, completely turning around a season that started rocky with a Durant trade request they didn’t accept.
Poor early season results, which led to the firing of head coach Steve Nash, along with a multi-game ban of Irving for promoting anti-Semitic material, but now the Nets have skyrocketed and are on their best streak since they moved. Brooklyn from New Jersey in 2012.
“I am a simple person and I always try to keep things simple. What I did was emphasize what was beneficial for the team,” explained Jacque Vaughn, Steve Nash’s replacement.
“We keep it simple on defense and just make a few adjustments so they play with a clear mind,” Vaughn said during the press conference.
Durant also surpassed the 26,496 points Tim Duncan had in his career and ousted him from 15th all-time in the scoring charts.
“In my career I’ve been able to pass on great legends, like someone who changed the game like that,” Durant said. “It’s something I’m going to tell my people about tonight and we’ll remember how I got here. It’s great to achieve these things, but I want to keep pushing because I have a lot to do.”
– Paul George decides in Detroit –
In turn, the Los Angeles Clippers rallied from a 14-point lead in the final three minutes against the Detroit Pistons to force an overtime in which they won 142-131.
With Kawhi Leonard absent by rest, forward Paul George took the reins for the Clippers with 32 points, 11 assists and a key overtime performance.
The forward avoided a painful loss to the Pistons, bottom in the Eastern Conference, by scoring 7 points in an overtime that the Clippers controlled from the start.
In another of Monday’s seven games, the Miami Heat beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 113-110 despite the absences of their stars Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.
Veteran point guard Kyle Lowry led Miami with 18 points and 9 assists while for the Timberwolves, who are exiting the playoffs, young guard Anthony Edwards had 29 points with 5 3-pointers.
Another surprise of the day came with the victory of the Houston Rockets, last in the West, on the field of the Chicago Bulls for 133-118.
Young Kevin Porter Jr (36 points and 9 assists) and Jalen Green (24 points) peppered the Bulls with 6 3-pointers each.
– Monday results in the NBA:
Cleveland Cavaliers-Brooklyn Nets 117-125
Detroit Pistons–LA Clippers 131-142 (overtime)
Miami Heat vs Minnesota Timberwolves 113-110
Chicago Bulls-Houston Rockets 118-133
New Orleans-Indiana Pacers Pelicans 113-93
San Antonio Spurs-Utah Jazz 126-122
Portland Trail Blazers–Charlotte Hornets 124-113
gbv/ma
© Agence France-Presse
copy the content
