Kevin Durant had 32 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds, leading the Brooklyn Nets back from 21 points down to a 110-98 victory Wednesday night that strengthened their chances of the best spot possible next week in the Eastern Conference play-in tournament.
Durant hasn’t lost a game against the Knicks in nine years and the stakes are even bigger now since he and Kyrie Irving showed up in Brooklyn in 2019.
”We know how much Knicks fans don’t like us, especially now this era of the Nets, with us not choosing the Knicks, me and Kyrie. So it definitely adds something to the rivalry,” Durant said.
Brooklyn are within a game of Cleveland for seventh place in the East.
The Nets host the Cavaliers on Friday night. If they win that and then beat Indiana on Sunday in their regular-season finale, they would finish seventh and need to win one game in two chances at home in the play-in to qualify for the postseason.
Kevin Durant vs. the Knicks tonight:
💰 32 Pts
💰 10 Reb
💰 11 AstNets get the season sweep over their NYC rivals. pic.twitter.com/m0EZbNjKYs
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) April 7, 2022
The #NBA75 Celebration broadcast for Nets-Knicks is live NOW on ESPN2 🤩📺 pic.twitter.com/nVkP502Mog
— ESPN (@espn) April 6, 2022