On January 16, Beijing time, the Nets defeated the Pelicans 120-105 at home, killing opponents twice this season. Durant unexpectedly sprained his left knee in the second quarter and withdrew from the game. He will undergo an MRI tomorrow to determine the severity of the injury. Harden had 27 points, eight rebounds and 15 assists, and the Net led the Pelicans by 28 points at halftime to consolidate their advantage in the second half and eventually win at home. Pelicans' Ingram had 22 points and eight assists.
Statistics
Pelicans: Ingram 22 points, 4 rebounds and 8 assists, Hart 14 points and 11 rebounds, Jones 13 points and 4 rebounds, Varan 13 points and 5 rebounds, Graham 10 points and 4 assists.
Nets: Harden 27 points, 8 rebounds and 15 assists, Durant 12 points (injury return), Mills 21 points, Sharp 12 points and 10 rebounds, Edwards 16 points, Thomas 20 points
Star of the Field: Harden
Durant unexpectedly retired from injury, and Harden took on the team's offensive and organizational responsibilities. In this game, he contributed 27 points, 8 rebounds and 15 assists to help the Nets double the Pelicans.
Injuries: Durant sprained his left knee and withdrew from the game
With 5 minutes and 44 seconds left in the second quarter of the game, an accident occurred suddenly. Pelicans player Jones broke through and knocked down Nets player Brown, who fell to the ground just in time to hit the unprepared Durant behind him. The impact left Durant injured and he returned to the locker room. The Nets officially announced that Durant sprained his left knee, will not return this game, and he will undergo an MRI examination tomorrow.
Game tidbits
Durant's first quarter whistle three-point timeout is invalid!
Harden missed three-pointers, surpassed Ray Allen in his career three-pointers, and dominated the first place in NBA history!
Highlight moments
Ingram shook his opponent away with his footsteps, turned around and hit a shot!
Durant hit a 2+1 shot!
Harden quickly attacked the magic pass, and Sharp followed up with a two-handed dunk!
Hart dunked 2+1!
Ingram Gliding Dunks!
In the final quarter, Harden withdrew his three-point shot to consolidate the Nets' lead.
Thomas hit a three-pointer from the bottom corner and he performed well in this game.
Game review
In the first quarter, Durant hit a shot and Graham also scored. Mills hit three-pointers and Harden scored four straight points. Ingram hit three-pointers, and Varan and Ingram hit mid-range shots. Mills scored on a layup, Durant shot 2+1, Sharp dunked, Durant hit a three-pointer and the Nets went on a 10-0 run. Hart hit a three-pointer and Harden scored on a European layup. Walker and Thomas scored three-pointers, Alvarado hit 2+1, and Durant's three-point shot was ineffective. In the first quarter, the Nets led the Pelicans 32-22, and Durant scored 12 points in a single quarter.
In the second quarter, Thomas scored from mid-range, Sharp hit a layup, Edwards scored five points in a row, Sharp scored a basket, and the Nets went on an 11-0 run to stretch the gap to 21 points. Hart made two free throws to break the Pelicans' nearly four-minute scoring drought. Edwards hit a shot, Hart received a technical offense, harden hit a free throw. Sharp received a dunk in the air and Varan scored on a layup. Durant left the field injured, Edwards hit three consecutive points, Ingleram also scored five consecutive points, Mills and Harden hit three-pointers, the point difference came to 30 points, and Ingram scored in the middle. At halftime, the Nets led the Pelicans 69-41. 28 points set the Nets' most halftime lead difference this season.
Easy side fight again, Jones hit a three-point shot, Sharp scored a layup, Hart scored a dunk, and Jones scored a layup. Ingram scored four straight points, Hart dunked 2+1 and the Pelicans went on an 11-0 run. Mills threw a 2+1 shot and Varan scored on a layup. Thomas threw a shot and Sharp scored on a layup. Graham hit a three-pointer, Hart scored on a layup and the Pelicans narrowed the gap to 15 points. Thomas scored consecutive hits, Harden scored 2+1, Hayes scored with a dunk, Harden scored on a layup, Alvarado hit a three-pointer, Temple hit a three-pointer, and Griffin scored consecutive hooks. At the end of the third quarter, the Nets led the Pelicans 95-77.
In the final quarter, Mills scored six straight points, Varan scored on a layup, Edwards hit a three-pointer, and Varan scored a layup. Graham scored with a dunk, Harden scored five straight points, and the Nets still led by 26 points. Jones dunked, Varan hit a mid-range shot, Brown scored four points in a row, Varan scored a layup, Hart scored inside, Jones dunked and the Pelicans narrowed the gap to 17 points. Thomas hit a three-pointer, Harden hit a layup and the game went into trash time. In the end, the Nets beat the Pelicans at home to double-match their opponents this season.
Player ratings
Pelicans: Graham: 3.3 Hart: 8.3 Ingram: 9.3 Jones: 7.3 Valanciunas: 9.0 Hayes: 8.1
Nets: Harden: 9.8 Mills: 9.9 Durant: 9.6 Edwards: 9.9 Sharp: 9.9 Thomas: 9.8