Kevin Durant delivers down the stretch as Nets rally to beat Hornets
Kevin Durant #7 of the Nets drives to the basket while guarded by Mason Plumlee #24 of the Charlotte Hornets in the third quarter during their game at Spectrum Center on November 05, 2022 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Credit: Getty Images
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Nets, undermanned and under fire, turned to the one superstar they have left in the fourth quarter against the Hornets on Saturday night. And Kevin Durant delivered.
With the Nets trailing by a point, Durant hit a go-ahead three-pointer and followed with a silky-smooth jumper to give the Nets the lead for good in a 98-94 victory at Spectrum Center.
Durant finished with 27 points. The Nets, who trailed by as many as 12 in the fourth after blowing a 13-point first-half lead, won their second road game in as many nights.
The Nets blew out the Wizards by 42 points in Washington on Friday night. The Nets outscored the Wizards 70-29 from late in the second half until game’s end and carried that momentum for the first quarter and a half on Saturday before faltering and needed a huge late comeback.
The Nets (4-6) improved to 2-1 under acting coach Jacque Vaughn and 2-0 without the suspended Kyrie Irving, who will miss at least three more games.
Cam Thomas added 21 points in 29 minutes off the bench.
“That was (a) gritty, grindy, Brooklyn-esque kind of a fourth quarter,” Vaughn said. “I think a 21-7 run to finish the game. Down 12 at one point. But the guys just kept fighting.”
The Hornets (3-7), who were also playing the second of a back-to-back, lost their fourth in a row. They were led by Terry Rozier’s 25 points. Rozier had missed six straight games with a sprained ankle.
Durant set the franchise record (since the team started keeping track in 1997) with his 56th consecutive made free throw in the fourth quarter. Sam Cassell made 55 in a row in 1998. Durant hit No. 57, too, to help seal the victory.
Seth Curry (ankle) scored three points in his second game of the season. Curry went scoreless in 18 minutes on Oct. 29 vs. Indiana.
Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.
