"It was good to get a win and be on the bench" - Kevin Durant on sitting out fourth quarter of Brooklyn Nets blowout win over Bulls
Kevin Durant's Brooklyn Nets stormed to a 138-112 win over the Chicago Bulls in their top-of-the-table clash on Wednesday. The Nets desperately needed to get back to winning ways after losing five of their last seven games.
Brooklyn took control of the match by outscoring the Bulls 39-19 in the third quarter, and took a 101-79 lead into the final quarter. Durant scored 17 points during that stretch, playing all 12 minutes of the frame.
The Brooklyn Nets did not need their star man after that as he rested through the fourth quarter. Speaking after the game, Durant said he was happy to sit on the bench to cheer on his teammates.
Here's what he said (via Nets Videos):
"It was good to get a win and be on the bench and cheering the guys on as you're winning the game. It's been a rough like five or six games for us, but you know, one of these games is good for just the team in general."
30-8 run to end the 3rd https://t.co/kTHjEkb40C
The Brooklyn Nets haven't been at their lethal best this season. They have had to rely on Kevin Durant to a great extent to help them win games. Durant has played a team-high 37.4 minutes per game, the most he has averaged since the 2013-14 campaign.
This was one of the few games where the Brooklyn Nets received contributions from all active players in the rotation, helping Kevin Durant get significant rest.
Kevin Durant scores 27 points on 10 field goal attempts as Brooklyn Nets rout Chicago Bulls
Durant produced one of his most efficient games of the 2021-22 NBA season in Chicago. The former league MVP scored 27 points on seven-of-ten shooting from the floor. He made three 3-point field goals on four attempts from the arc and converted ten of his 11 free-throws.
25+ points for the 12th straight game. Unstoppable.
@KDTrey5 #NBAAllStar https://t.co/sH6F3PKYUl
The Brooklyn Nets had four players scoring 20 or more points on the night. Kyrie Irving wasn't part of that group as he had just nine points. The Nets shot 56.3% as a team, including 17 3-point field goals. They also made 23 of their 28 free throws.
The win helped Steve Nash's men strengthen their hold as the #2 seed in the East and cut the gap to 1.5 games behind the #1 Chicago Bulls. Brooklyn will be hoping to keep the momentum going when they return to New York for a two-game homestand.
The Brooklyn Nets currently have an 11-10 season record playing at the Barclays Center and will be keen to capitalize on home-court advantage moving forward.