Nets star Kyrie Irving drops 60 points in wild, historic win over Magic
Kyrie Irving is making the most of what little time he has left this season.
Irving went off on Tuesday night at the Amway Center and dropped a career-high 60 points to lead the Brooklyn Nets to a 150-108 win over the Orlando Magic. He set a franchise record, and followed teammate Kevin Durant’s 53-point performance on Sunday. Irving and Durant became the first teammates in NBA history to have a 50-point games in back-to-back contests.
Irving’s scoring outburst marks the 16th 50-point game this season. Eight of those happened in the past 15 days, most recently with Minnesota Timberwolves star Karl-Anthony Towns’ 60-point outing Monday night. Consecutive 60-point games hasn't happened in the NBA since 1962.
“As you see across the league, guys are just putting up crazy numbers,” Irving said, via the Yes Network. “But when you have two guys on the same team competing like that, friendly competition, brotherly competition, of course we talk about it but we want to be savants at it. We don’t use that word lightly.”
"It's a testament to the way that we've been gelling as a team."
Kyrie Irving praises his teammates after going off for 60 points. ⬇️#NETSonYES pic.twitter.com/ADRqeAzgpY— YES Network (@YESNetwork) March 16, 2022
Forty-one of Irving’s 60 points came in the first half, where he shot an incredible 14 of 19 from the field and 6 of 7 from behind the arc. His run gave the Nets a 30-point lead at the break, and set a franchise record for most points scored in a half.
Irving was also one point shy of matching Kobe Bryant’s league record of 42 points scored in a first half.
Irving quickly pushed past the 50-point mark in the third quarter after weaving through traffic and making a contested layup over Wendell Carter Jr.
51 AND COUNTING FOR KYRIE 🔥
(via @NBATV)pic.twitter.com/YrcfcMmsLK— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) March 16, 2022
He then got to 60 after drilling a cross-over 3-pointer midway through the fourth quarter, which sparked a celebration on the court.
60 FOR KYRIE 😱
That sets a career high for Irving and the Nets franchise record 🤯pic.twitter.com/qjXnCbSSeN— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) March 16, 2022
Nets head coach Steve Nash then pulled Irving from the game, ending his night there. He shot 20 of 31 from the field and 8 of 12 from the 3-point line in 35 minutes to get his 60 points. Durant added 19 points for the Nets in the 42-point win, and Patty Mills finished with 15 off the bench.
“I think it really is a testament to the way that we’ve been gelling as a team, and us just giving each other confidence and doing the right things,” Irving said, via the Yes Network. “When you can get 60 in the flow of a game and it doesn’t seem forced and you’re not putting up a few too many bad shots, and you come to the bench and guys are supporting you and telling you to go after the record, that makes basketball well worth it.”
Irving is still unvaccinated against COVID-19, and therefore unable to play in games for the Nets at the Barclays Center due to a New York City mandate. As Irving has been insistent on remaining unvaccinated, and New York’s mayor Eric Adams isn’t budging on the mandate, Irving has just four regular-season games left that he can play in this season.
The Nets have now won four straight. They'll host the Dallas Mavericks next on Wednesday, and Irving will have to be a spectator once again.
