Kevin Durant had the advantage over Kyrie Irving in the first meeting between the two men since being traded by the Brooklyn Nets and the Phoenix Suns posted a 130-126 victory over the Dallas Mavericks.
Durant was dominant with 37 points and seven rebounds in 40 minutes of play. Former teammate Irving produced at a good pace with 30 points and seven assists, but Dallas came up short.
With 11 seconds left and the score at 126-126, Durant drove a basket right under Irving’s gaze to give Phoenix a two-point lead. Seconds later, Durant pounced on the ball after a missed shot from Luka Doncic to get the rebound and put the final nail in the Mavericks coffin.
Durant then added two more points on free throws to complete the job. KD was backed up by 36 points from Devin Booker, who also had 10 assists for the double.
On the losing side, Doncic finished the game with 34 points and nine rebounds. Tim Hardaway Jr. provided 21 points and Christian Wood added 17 points.
The Suns are always perfect when Durant is in the lineup with three wins in as many games. For their part, the Mavericks concede a third defeat in their last four games.
Haliburton spectacular late in the game
Tyrese Haliburton had 29 points including a long-range shot that broke the deadlock with 2.7 seconds on the clock Sunday as the Indiana Pacers beat the Chicago Bulls 125-122.
Author of 42 points, Zach LaVine of the Bulls had leveled the score with 22.6 seconds to go, thanks to two free throws.
Nikola Vucevic had the last chance to tie the game, but he missed the target.
Montreal’s Bennedict Mathurin provided 17 points for the Pacers, who are two games out of 10th place in the East.
DeMar DeRozan had 23 points for the Bulls, who have lost three of their last four games.
The Pacers will play again Monday night at home against Philadelphia.
Elsewhere in the NBA
Warriors 105 – Lakers 113
GS : back after missing the last 11 games, Stephen Curry was the best of his team with 27 points
LAL : Dominant performance of 39 points, eight rebounds and six assists for Anthony Davis
Hornets 86 – Nets 102
CHA : Doubled 10 points and 14 rebounds for Mark Williams
BRO : Mikal Bridges continued his strong performance since arriving in Brooklyn with 33 points and eight rebounds
Trailblazers 122 – Magic 119
BY : another game over 40 points for Damian Lillard, who ends the game with 41 points despite a 25% success rate (4/16) from downtown
ORL : Paolo Banchero led the attack with 26 points
Jazz – Thunder
UTA :
OKC :
Spurs – Rockets
on :
NEW :
Bucks – Wizards
MIL :
WAS :
Knicks – Celtics
NOW :
BOS :
Grizzlies – Clippers
MEM :
LAC :
