Durant scores 25, Nets hand Wizards 1st loss, 104-90
NEW YORK (AP) Kevin Durant scored 25 points and the Brooklyn Nets bounced back from a poor finish a day earlier with a blistering start that sent them to a 104-90 victory over the Washington Wizards on Monday night.
Patty Mills made five 3-pointers and added 21 points off the bench, while James Harden finished with 14 points, nine assists and six rebounds.
The Nets were dominated in the second half of a 111-95 loss to Charlotte on Sunday in their home opener, which featured protests by fans over the vaccine mandate that has kept Kyrie Irving from playing for Brooklyn. They overcame poor 3-point shooting nights from Harden (1 for 8) and Joe Harris (3 for 11) by holding Washington below 35% shooting.
''I think we came in on the second night of a back-to-back and imposed our will the whole game,'' Durant said.
Washington's Bradley Beal scored 19 points but shot 8 for 22 after missing a game with a bruised right hip. He took 13 3-pointers, making just three, and didn't attempt a free throw.
''I liked the looks and I was definitely confident in them,'' Beal said. ''You guys know, I'll be good, I'll bounce back. But I definitely have to be better for my team in all aspects and I think me attacking the basket would have been a little bit better. I could have gotten to the line and put us in the bonus, create some opportunities for other teammates, too.''
The Wizards won their first two games but were already down by 18 in this one by the time the Nets honored Spencer Dinwiddie with a video tribute after the first quarter of his return to Barclays Center.
Dinwiddie shot 3 for 13 and finished with 10 points, six assists and five rebounds. He averaged 14.3 points in 274 games for Brooklyn from 2016-21 before partially tearing his ACL on Dec. 27 in the third game of the season and having surgery.
The Nets scored 38 points in the first quarter - one more than the entire second half Sunday - and led by 18 after shooting 59%.
''We came out ready,'' Nets forward Bruce Brown said.
The lead grew to 47-22 on Harden's layup with 7 1/2 minutes left in the second and it was 59-42 at the half when Durant pulled up from a few feet behind the 3-point line with 3.8 seconds left and two defenders in front of him, grinning widely as he jogged back down the court.
The smiles briefly went away for the Nets when they missed their first nine shots of the third quarter, allowing Washington to cut it to 61-52 on Daniel Gafford's three-point play. But the Nets answered with a 9-0 spurt, with Harden's four-point play and Mills' 3-pointer pushing it back to 18.
TIP-INS
Wizards: Coach Wes Unseld Jr. said before the game that ''our depth is going to win us some games,'' but only Montrezl Harrell and Aaron Holiday scored off the Washington bench in the first three quarters. ... Gafford had 13 points.
Nets: Brooklyn rested LaMarcus Aldridge on the second night of a back-to-back. Blake Griffin returned after sitting Sunday and shot 1 for 7 but grabbed nine rebounds. ... Brown scored 14 points.
DINWIDDIE'S RETURN
Unseld said it was clear when training camp opened that Dinwiddie had gotten himself prepared to play when this season started.
''He was pretty much ready to go,'' Unseld said. ''We saw him over the summer obviously after we acquired him and he was well ahead of schedule.''
Just not enough to have returned a couple months earlier.
The Nets badly needed help in their second-round series against Milwaukee after first Harden and then Irving were hurt. But even if they advanced, coach Steve Nash said there was no consideration to bringing Dinwiddie back.
''He had the perfect scenario in a sense,'' Nash said. ''Like, I think that ACLs, people say six months you can be cleared to play. I think there's like a two-three month window after that where you should play in a safe environment before you really are committed to playing again. So, I personally didn't like it, I don't think anyone in our medical staff thought it was fair to Spencer and I think if it jeopardizes the situation he's in right now, it's just not fair to Spencer. So we didn't bring it up.''
UP NEXT
Wizards: Visit Boston on Wednesday.
Nets: Host Miami on Wednesday.
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Time | Team | Play | Score | |
---|---|---|---|---|
12:00 | Daniel Gafford vs. Blake Griffin (Kentavious Caldwell-Pope gains possession) | |||
11:42 | +2 | Kentavious Caldwell-Pope makes two point floating jump shot (Bradley Beal assists) | 2-0 | |
11:25 | +2 | Blake Griffin makes two point driving layup (Joe Harris assists) | 2-2 | |
11:14 | Kentavious Caldwell-Pope misses three point jump shot | |||
11:11 | Joe Harris defensive rebound | |||
11:05 | +2 | Bruce Brown makes two point layup (James Harden assists) | 2-4 | |
10:48 | +3 | Kentavious Caldwell-Pope makes three point jump shot (Bradley Beal assists) | 5-4 | |
10:28 | +2 | Kevin Durant makes two point turnaround jump shot | 5-6 | |
10:14 | +3 | Spencer Dinwiddie makes three point step back jump shot | 8-6 | |
9:58 | Blake Griffin misses three point jump shot | |||
9:58 | Kyle Kuzma defensive rebound | |||
9:48 | Bradley Beal turnover (lost ball) (Kevin Durant steals) | |||
9:37 | James Harden misses two point driving layup | |||
9:35 | James Harden offensive rebound | |||
9:34 | +2 | James Harden makes two point putback layup | 8-8 | |
9:19 | Kyle Kuzma misses two point jump shot | |||
9:17 | Blake Griffin defensive rebound | |||
9:11 | James Harden misses three point step back jump shot | |||
9:08 | Blake Griffin offensive rebound | |||
9:08 | Daniel Gafford personal foul (Blake Griffin draws the foul) | |||
9:02 | +3 | Joe Harris makes three point jump shot (James Harden assists) | 8-11 | |
8:38 | Kentavious Caldwell-Pope misses three point jump shot | |||
8:35 | Joe Harris defensive rebound | |||
8:30 | +2 | Bruce Brown makes two point layup (James Harden assists) | 8-13 | |
8:10 | Blake Griffin personal foul (Bradley Beal draws the foul) | |||
8:03 | +2 | Bradley Beal makes two point jump shot | 10-13 | |
7:46 | Kevin Durant misses two point fadeaway jump shot | |||
7:42 | Kyle Kuzma defensive rebound | |||
7:36 | Kentavious Caldwell-Pope misses three point jump shot | |||
7:31 | Daniel Gafford offensive rebound | |||
7:31 | Daniel Gafford misses two point putback layup | |||
7:28 | Daniel Gafford offensive rebound | |||
7:27 | Daniel Gafford turnover (lost ball) (James Harden steals) | |||
7:26 | James Harden turnover (bad pass) (Kentavious Caldwell-Pope steals) | |||
7:24 | +2 | Kentavious Caldwell-Pope makes two point layup | 12-13 | |
7:14 | +2 | James Harden makes two point driving layup | 12-15 | |
6:51 | Spencer Dinwiddie misses two point driving layup | |||
6:50 | Daniel Gafford offensive rebound | |||
6:49 | Bradley Beal misses three point jump shot | |||
6:49 | Joe Harris defensive rebound | |||
6:44 | +2 | Bruce Brown makes two point dunk (James Harden assists) | 12-17 | |
6:31 | +2 | Daniel Gafford makes two point reverse layup (Bradley Beal assists) | 14-17 | |
6:31 | +2 | Daniel Gafford makes two point reverse layup (Bradley Beal assists) | 14-17 | |
6:04 | Blake Griffin misses two point driving dunk | |||
6:04 | Blake Griffin misses two point turnaround hook shot | |||
6:00 | Blake Griffin offensive rebound | |||
6:00 | Blake Griffin misses two point putback layup | |||
5:59 | Raul Neto defensive rebound | |||
5:55 | Bradley Beal misses three point step back jump shot | |||
5:51 | Kevin Durant defensive rebound | |||
5:43 | +2 | James Johnson makes two point reverse layup (Patty Mills assists) | 14-19 | |
5:20 | Kyle Kuzma misses three point step back jump shot | |||
5:17 | Blake Griffin defensive rebound | |||
5:06 | Wizards technical foul (Defensive three second) | |||
5:06 | +1 | Kevin Durant makes technical free throw 1 of 1 | 14-20 | |
4:58 | +2 | Patty Mills makes two point jump shot | 14-22 | |
4:46 | Raul Neto misses three point jump shot | |||
4:42 | Bruce Brown defensive rebound | |||
4:34 | +3 | Patty Mills makes three point jump shot (Kevin Durant assists) | 14-25 | |
4:19 | Bradley Beal misses two point floating jump shot | |||
4:17 | Kevin Durant defensive rebound | |||
4:16 | Patty Mills misses three point jump shot | |||
4:12 | Deni Avdija defensive rebound | |||
3:58 | Bradley Beal turnover (bad pass) | |||
3:58 | Bradley Beal personal foul (Loose ball) (Bruce Brown draws the foul) | |||
3:48 | +2 | Kevin Durant makes two point fadeaway jump shot (Patty Mills assists) | 14-27 | |
3:25 | Raul Neto misses two point jump shot | |||
3:23 | Nic Claxton defensive rebound | |||
3:14 | Kevin Durant misses two point jump shot | |||
3:09 | Montrezl Harrell defensive rebound | |||
3:03 | Bradley Beal misses three point step back jump shot | |||
3:00 | Patty Mills defensive rebound | |||
2:58 | Davis Bertans shooting foul (Kevin Durant draws the foul) | |||
2:58 | Nets 60 second timeout | |||
2:58 | Kevin Durant misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
2:58 | Nets offensive rebound | |||
2:58 | +1 | Kevin Durant makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 14-28 | |
2:39 | Aaron Holiday misses two point driving hook shot | |||
2:35 | Deni Avdija offensive rebound | |||
2:34 | Deni Avdija misses two point layup | |||
2:32 | Patty Mills defensive rebound | |||
2:27 | +2 | Nic Claxton makes two point dunk (DeAndre' Bembry assists) | 14-30 | |
2:06 | +3 | Aaron Holiday makes three point jump shot | 17-30 | |
1:54 | +2 | Kevin Durant makes two point jump shot | 17-32 | |
1:43 | DeAndre' Bembry shooting foul (Montrezl Harrell draws the foul) | |||
1:43 | Montrezl Harrell misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
1:43 | Wizards offensive rebound | |||
1:43 | +1 | Montrezl Harrell makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 18-32 | |
1:30 | +3 | Patty Mills makes three point jump shot (Nic Claxton assists) | 18-35 | |
1:14 | Davis Bertans misses three point step back jump shot | |||
1:11 | DeAndre' Bembry defensive rebound | |||
1:12 | Davis Bertans personal foul (Loose ball) (Nic Claxton draws the foul) | |||
1:01 | Patty Mills misses three point jump shot | |||
0:57 | Nic Claxton offensive rebound | |||
0:57 | Nic Claxton misses two point putback layup | |||
0:56 | Spencer Dinwiddie defensive rebound | |||
0:51 | Spencer Dinwiddie misses three point step back jump shot | |||
0:47 | James Harden defensive rebound | |||
0:42 | DeAndre' Bembry misses two point floating jump shot | |||
0:38 | Spencer Dinwiddie defensive rebound | |||
0:31 | +2 | Aaron Holiday makes two point driving layup | 20-35 | |
0:08 | +3 | Patty Mills makes three point jump shot (James Harden assists) | 20-38 | |
0:00 | James Harden blocks Spencer Dinwiddie's two point turnaround jump shot | |||
0:00 | Wizards offensive rebound | |||
0:00 | End of period |
Time | Team | Play | Score | |
---|---|---|---|---|
11:51 | Joe Harris offensive foul (Kentavious Caldwell-Pope draws the foul) | |||
11:51 | Joe Harris turnover (offensive foul) | |||
11:37 | Montrezl Harrell misses two point turnaround hook shot | |||
11:34 | Nic Claxton defensive rebound | |||
11:27 | Joe Harris misses three point jump shot | |||
11:25 | Montrezl Harrell defensive rebound | |||
11:21 | Nic Claxton blocks Spencer Dinwiddie's two point jump shot | |||
11:21 | Wizards offensive rebound | |||
11:09 | Kentavious Caldwell-Pope misses two point driving layup | |||
11:07 | Jevon Carter defensive rebound | |||
11:02 | James Harden misses two point finger roll layup | |||
10:59 | Spencer Dinwiddie defensive rebound | |||
10:57 | +2 | Kentavious Caldwell-Pope makes two point driving layup (Spencer Dinwiddie assists) | 22-38 | |
10:34 | +2 | Nic Claxton makes two point dunk (James Harden assists) | 22-40 | |
10:10 | Montrezl Harrell misses two point driving hook shot | |||
10:08 | Paul Millsap defensive rebound | |||
9:59 | Joe Harris misses three point jump shot | |||
9:57 | Montrezl Harrell defensive rebound | |||
9:35 | Spencer Dinwiddie misses three point step back jump shot | |||
9:33 | Joe Harris defensive rebound | |||
9:19 | +2 | James Harden makes two point driving layup | 22-42 | |
9:02 | Davis Bertans misses three point jump shot | |||
9:00 | Jevon Carter defensive rebound | |||
8:52 | +3 | Joe Harris makes three point jump shot (Paul Millsap assists) | 22-45 | |
8:50 | Wizards 60 second timeout | |||
8:33 | Kentavious Caldwell-Pope misses two point driving layup | |||
8:31 | James Harden defensive rebound | |||
8:26 | Joe Harris misses three point jump shot | |||
8:25 | Davis Bertans defensive rebound | |||
8:25 | Jevon Carter personal foul (Davis Bertans draws the foul) | |||
8:09 | Aaron Holiday misses two point driving jump shot | |||
8:06 | Joe Harris defensive rebound | |||
7:55 | Bruce Brown misses three point jump shot | |||
7:54 | Wizards defensive rebound | |||
7:54 | Jevon Carter personal foul (Loose ball) (Aaron Holiday draws the foul) | |||
7:39 | Bradley Beal misses three point jump shot | |||
7:36 | Paul Millsap defensive rebound | |||
7:29 | +2 | James Harden makes two point driving layup | 22-47 | |
7:22 | Paul Millsap personal foul (Raul Neto draws the foul) | |||
7:14 | Kyle Kuzma misses two point driving layup | |||
7:11 | Kyle Kuzma offensive rebound | |||
7:07 | +2 | Kyle Kuzma makes two point putback layup | 24-47 | |
6:55 | Paul Millsap misses three point jump shot | |||
6:53 | Joe Harris offensive rebound | |||
6:42 | James Harden misses three point jump shot | |||
6:39 | Wizards defensive rebound | |||
6:39 |