Los Angeles (AFP)
The duo of James Harden and Kevin Durant turned their Brooklyn Nets behind its host Dallas Mavericks by 17 points in the third quarter, to a deserved victory 102-99 in the NBA.
Harden and Durant scored 47 points together (23 for the first and 24 for the second), to strengthen the Nets’ lead in the Eastern Region with 17 wins against seven defeats.
Brooklyn returned to the competition atmosphere in the last quarter, scoring 27 points compared to 13 for his opponent, after he had advanced for the first time in the match after Harden’s free throw gave his team the advantage, by a point difference of 91-90, 6.41 minutes before the final whistle.
Dallas star, Slovenian Luka Doncic, responded by giving his team the lead twice, but the Australian Patty Mills hat-trick “scored 10 points”, returning Brooklyn to the lead 98-97, with less than three minutes left.
Harden returned to shine, scoring a 100-97 basket, while Durant continued his team’s success with a final basket.
The victory of the Nets at American Airlines Center in Dallas was considered a proof of the technical thinking of coach Steve Nash, who pushed his two stars, Harden and Durant, for 41 and 40 minutes, respectively.
“I love being on the court,” Durant said after the win. “A match like this evening, where we were a little bit tired and needed a little bit of energy in the fourth quarter.”
In Los Angeles and at Stepless Center, the Lakers easily beat their historic rival, the Boston Celtics 117-102.
LeBron James scored 30 points and Russell Westbrook added 24, bringing the Lakers to sixth place in the Western Region with 13 wins against 12 defeats.
It is the fourth time in his last five matches that “King” James has scored 30 points or more, since he returned to the stadiums last week, after he was subjected to the Corona virus protocol due to conflicting test results.
In the third game, the New York Knicks ended a series of three consecutive defeats, beating the San Antonio Spurs 121-109.
Canadian winner Rowan Alexander Barrett stood out with 32 points, while six players from the Knicks finished with 10 or more points.
.