It was blowout Brooklyn basketball.
After going down early, the Nets dismantled the Magic, 129-92. The game featured a 48-point turnaround from being down by 10 early in the first to the final score.
Kyrie Irving paved the way with a near double-double of 27 points and nine assists to go along with five rebounds in 30 minutes, While James Harden flirted with another near triple-double of 20 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists in 33 minutes, the Nets got big boosts from two of their role players. Landry Shamet, who continues to grow his confidence outside the perimeter, finished with 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting overall and a confidence-boosting 5-of-9 from deep. His most impressive stat, however, may be his plus/minus, a sterling +30! Then, there was Nic Claxton in his second game back from injury.
Claxton, who once again saw early first-quarter minutes, displayed his potential as he finished with 10 points to go along with three rebounds, four steals, two blocks and one assist in 15 minutes, which included a thunderous dunk down the lane. It resulted in a worthy technical for hanging on the rim as Brooklyn’s bench exploded in excitement screaming “He’s Back!”
As a team, Brooklyn finished the dominant win shooting 44.4 percent from deep and 53.3 percent overall while recording 13 turnovers along the way. The Nets are now 22-12 on the season, a half game out of the Eastern Conference lead. The eight-game winning streak is currently the league’s longest.
For Orlando, Nikola Vucevic did about everything to keep their ship afloat. The All-Star finished with 28 points, 12 rebounds, and two assists in 32 minutes followed by James Ennis III with 15 points in 16 m
It was a strange start for both teams, which included four airballs in the opening four minutes of play. Brooklyn started the game disjointed offensively, going 2-of-9 from the field while the Nets while turning Rover the ball three times in that span which resulted in Steve Nash calling a timeout with 6:47 remaining in the first.
Following the timeout, Nash subbed in Nic Claxton and Landry Shamet but the Magic cleaned up their play as Orlando, led by Vucevic. The Nets began to gain a rhythm offensively in the final minute, ending the first trailing 28-24.
The Nets bounced back in the second in a big way, ultimately scoring 60 points in 18 minutes. Brooklyn started their offensive tear with an 8-0 run, regaining the lead in the opening minutes of the second quarter, and carried it over.
Harden led Brooklyn’s offensive barrage as the Nets made eight straight shots to boost their lead to eight points with 3:58 remaining and they kept rolling. Brooklyn ended the second quarter piling on 41 points and headed into the locker room with a 65-47 lead, shooting 51.7 percent from the field and a growing 40.9 percent from deep. Brooklyn’s 22-point halftime lead marked the second-largest positive point differential in a quarter for the Nets this season. To make things even sweeter, the Nets outscored the Magic 41-19 in the second.
At the half, DeAndre Jordan, who finished with eight points and 11 rebounds in 26 minutes, was the only Net starter not in double-figures. Harden, who had three fouls in the half, led the Nets with 17 points to go along with six rebounds and five assists followed by Irving with 14 points in 18 minutes.
Brooklyn clicked offensively throughout the second half showing their fluidity and displaying great ball movement, outscoring Orlando 27-25 in the third to enter the final 12 minutes of play with a lengthy 20-point lead.
The Nets started the fourth by simply pouring it on continuing their barrage offensively. With 7:17 remaining, Nash took out Irving and released his bench as Chris Chiozza and Tyler Cook checked in to join Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, Tyler Johnson, and Landry Shamet as the Nets breezed through garbage time to pick up their eighth straight win.
Oh yeah, Kevin Durant missed his ninth game in the last…
Read More: Six Nets finish in double-figures as Brooklyn blows out Orlando, 129-92