In the first playoff in the East, the Nets defeated the Cavaliers to advance to the playoffs. Durant scored 25 points and 11 assists, and became the Nets' needle in the key moment, Irving added the icing on the cake, scoring 34 points and 12 assists in the first 12 shots.
The Nets have played the Cavaliers five times this season and won four games, and the advantage is crushing. The Nets all entered the rhythm at the beginning of the game, Irving led his teammates to attack the inside line, Durant also assisted Brown to fire on the outside, and his defensive end flew from the back to the big cap Makanen, which was one of the highlights of the first quarter.
Such positivity undoubtedly set the tone for the Nets, relying on strong defensive and counter-attacking rhythms, they blasted down 30 points in 10 minutes. Durant and Irving contributed 19 points and 10 assists on 8-of-8 shooting in the first quarter, and their efficiency was amazing.
But by the second quarter, the Nets bench still fell into the downwind, 5 minutes the whole team only scored 2 points, and Durant returned to encounter strict defense, the Cavaliers began to play a war of attrition against him, the Nets' overall offensive efficiency declined. Of course, the giant star ring is still important, and Irving has been racing the fairy ball before halftime, including the negative angle back whistle in the drift, using his personal ability to stabilize the Nets' advantage. Durant maintained a half-time +21 efficiency, and Irving's performance of 20 points on 9-of-9 shooting was even more amazing.
By the start of the second half, Irving maintained a strong play, passing the ball as accurately as a blade to cut through the Cavaliers defense, and hit three points to widen the point difference to as much as 20 points. Durant certainly played a key role, and without his patience to hold the ball to attract defense, the Nets wouldn't have created as many scoring opportunities.
But in the second half of the quarter, when he hit iron from a distance with continuous strong shots, he was forced to make a mistake, and the Cavaliers instantly chased the score. Durant won two doubles in the third quarter, and although Irving is invincible in efficiency, the person who controls the trend of the game is still KD. Garland opened the fourth quarter with 11 consecutive points to narrow the gap to single digits, and it was Durant who stood up at the key moment, and he received irving's pass at a 45-degree angle and scored his first three-pointer of the game.
In the face of the Cavaliers' counterattack, Durant played the role of a mainstay, still able to find the shooting space in the hand-to-hand combat, soaring into the dry pull jump shot for two consecutive rounds, forcing the Cavaliers to stop again. However, Irving, who shot 100% in the third quarter, was dud at a key moment in the fourth quarter, shooting 3 three-point shots in 10 minutes, which also allowed the Cavaliers to maintain suspense. In the final minute, the Nets led by 6 points, but Brown made a key contribution, playing with Clauston in an empty connection, and then receiving Irving's pass and cutting into the basket to score.
The Cavaliers could only foul, and after Durant hit two free throws in the last 15 seconds, the Nets finally secured the win.