Kevin Durant #7 of the Brooklyn Nets controls the ball as Bogdan Bogdanovic #13 of the Atlanta Hawks defends during the second half of the game at Barclays Center on December 9, 2022 in New York City. Jamie Squire/Getty Images/AFP
Kevin Durant scored 34 points, including a 3 going before 3:17 left, and the Brooklyn Nets made enough plays over the long haul to seal a 120-116 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday night Six in New York.
Durant missed the first five three-pointers before receiving a pass from Royce O’Neale and a shot from the right that gave Brooklyn a 111-109 lead. Durant’s 3-clutch pointer came after Trae Young’s shot sank to give Atlanta a 109-108 advantage with 3:44 remaining.
After Durant’s 3-pointer, the Nets took a 113-109 lead when Durant found Joe Harris to replace him with 2:55 left. Then, Durant hit a second 3-pointer from the same spot as last time to take a 116-111 lead with 1:09 remaining.
Durant missed two shots in the final minute, but the Nets won a counterattack each time. After two free throws from Seth Curry turned the game into a five-point match with 10 seconds left, Atlanta’s Bogdan Bogdanovic hit a 33-foot 3-pointer with 6.2 seconds left. Durant eventually won by sinking two at the line with 6.1 seconds remaining.
Kyrie Irving added 33 points and 11 rebounds for the Nets, whose 6-1 home win lasted seven games, a season-high, with five of those wins coming from single digits.
Kevin Durant Kyrie Irving
The @brooklyn network The duo put together for 67 PTS as they helped Brooklyn win.
Kai: 33 PTS, 11 REB, 5 3pm
Winnings: 34 points, 2 BLK pic.twitter.com/tJWCKKA6IQ– NBA (@NBA) December 10, 2022
TJ Warren added 14, Curry finished with 11 and Harris had 10 for the Nets. Brooklyn hit 54.9% from the floor and survived 21 spins.
Young scored 33 points, but Atlanta lost its third game in a row and fell for the seventh time in 10 games.
Bogdanovic added a season-high 31 to end the highest four games of his career for the Hawks, who shot 49.5% away. Atlanta’s Clint Capela scored twice (15 points, 11 rebounds), Trent Forrest scored 11 and AJ Griffin had 10.
Atlanta scored 62 points in the paint while competing without three starters: Dejounte Murray (ankle), John Collins (ankle) and De’Andre Hunter (hip).
After taking a six-point lead in the first half with 18 points from Durant, the Nets took a 68-64 lead after halftime. They took a 96-90 lead in the fourth round before Durant’s shot saved them from losing in the final minutes.
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