LOS ANGELES (REUTERS) - Kevin Durant scored 15 of his 32 points in the third quarter when the Brooklyn Nets surged ahead and pulled away for a 117-108 victory over the visiting Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night (Nov 3) in New York.
Durant helped the Nets close the third by scoring 13 points in a 20-4 run that spanned the final 4min 40sec. He snapped a 75-75 tie with two free throws and capped the quarter with an off-balance three-pointer over Cam Reddish just before the buzzer to put Brooklyn up 95-79.
Durant posted his third 30-point game of the season and the star forward shot 13 of 20 from the field. He also collected seven rebounds and five assists James Harden followed up his first triple-double of the season with 16 points and 11 of Brooklyn's 34 assists.
Joe Harris hit six three-pointers and added 18 points to help the Nets head out on a six-game road trip with a three-game winning streak. Reserve Patty Mills chipped in 14 while LaMarcus Aldridge and Bruce Brown contributed 10 apiece as Brooklyn shot 48.9 per cent and hit 22 of 48 three-pointers after shooting a franchise-record 65.3 per cent from the floor in Sunday's 117-91 rout of the Detroit Pistons.
DeAndre Hunter hit a career-high six three-pointers and scored 26 points, but Atlanta lost for the 11th time in the past 13 meetings against the Nets. Trae Young scored 11 points in the opening quarter and finished with 21 and 10 assists on six-of-22 shooting from the floor.
Kevin Huerter added 16 while Clint Capela (16 rebounds) and John Collins chipped in 13 apiece as Atlanta shot 43.6 per cent and allowed 26 points off 14 turnovers.
Durant returned shortly after Harden hit a three-pointer for a 109-96 lead with 6:23 remaining. Harden hit two more three-pointers as the Nets took a 116-100 lead with just under three minutes left to secure the game.
Before the surge in the third, Durant scored 12 points as the Nets shot 57.7 per cent and outscored the Hawks 17-4 over the final 3:28 of the first quarter for a 35-28 lead. Brooklyn blew a 10-point lead and held a 61-59 lead at intermission after Harden hit a three-pointer with 3.1 seconds remaining.
