By Adrian Stewart Co
It was a day of upsets in the National Basketball Association (NBA) on Sunday evening (Monday in the Philippines) with the heavily-favored squads tasting defeat at the hands of lowly opponents.
Brooklyn Nets, led by the tandem of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, has suffered their first defeat of the season at the hands of Charlotte Hornets, 106-104, at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.
From a tightly-contested opening half, the Hornets started to pull away in the third period and was ahead by 16 in the fourth before the Nets clawed its way back to within 99-101 in the fourth canto.
The Nets had a chance to even things up but Irving’s shot was foiled by the defense before the Hornets widened the advantage on a Devonte Graham triple. Terry Rozier then made two free throws late in the game to seal the win for Charlotte.
Gordon Hayward tallied 28 points, seven assists and six rebounds, while Rozier and PJ Washington contributed 19 and 14 markers, respectively, as the Hornets improved to 1-2. The Nets, which got 29 from Durant and 25 from Irving, dropped to 2-1.
Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks also suffered a stinging defeat after they were beaten by New York Knicks, 130-110, at the Madison Square Garden in New York.
Julius Randle finished with double-double 29 points and 17 rebounds, while Elfrid Payton and Alec Burks added 27 and 18, respectively, as the Knicks improved to 1-2. Antetokounmpo had 27 markers and 13 boards as the Bucks fell to 1-2.
Cleveland Cavaliers recorded its third straight win in as many games following a 118-94 domination over erstwhile unbeaten Philadelphia 76ers (2-1), which play minus star forward Joel Embiid.
Andre Drummond tallied double-double 24 points and 16 rebounds, while Collin Sexton added 22 markers for the Cavaliers, which lost Kevin Love early in the match due to an ankle injury.
In other results, Dallas Mavericks prevailed over Los Angeles Clippers, 124-73; New Orleans Pelicans outlasted San Antonio Spurs, 98-95; Orlando Magic repeated over Washington Wizards, 120-113; and Indiana Pacers escaped Boston Celtics, 108-107.
BOX SCORE:
CHARLOTTE 106 — Hayward 28, Rozier 19, Washington 14. Graham 13, Biyombo 12, Bridges 10, Ball 6, Co. Martin 4, McDaniels 0, Ca. Martin 0.
BROOKLYN 104 — Durant 29, Irving 25, Harris 13, Luwawu-Cabarrot 11, LeVert 10, Allen 8, Dinwiddie 6, Prince 2, Jordan 1, Green 0, Shamet 0.
Quarterscores: 23-22, 48-50, 82-77, 106-104./ASC, WDJ