On his 23rd birthday, D’Angelo Russell went toe-to-toe with Kemba Walker and led the Brooklyn Nets to win over the Charlotte Hornets.
- Brooklyn Nets 117 (31-30)
- Charlotte Hornets 115 (28-31)
- NBA, Final, Box Score
- Spectrum Center, Charlotte, North Carolina
D’Angelo Russell scored the last 12 points for the Brooklyn Nets, tallying 40 on the night, and his 23rd birthday.
The Nets NBA All-Star guard went step for step with Charlotte’s Kemba Walker in the fourth quarter, leaving the duel victorious. Walker finished with 32 points on the night.
Russell matched his career high and went six-for-15 from the three-point line. He’s tallied his second 40-point game this season, both having come in 2019.
When the game was on the line, @Dloading took matters into his own hands.
A career-high-tying 4️⃣0️⃣ points for DLo on his 23rd birthday ?? pic.twitter.com/FDYmpzURXf
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) February 24, 2019
Brooklyn took a 13-point lead in the first half, behind D’Angelo’s 16 points. They saw that lead swell up as high as 19 before the Hornets pulled off an unexpected run.
Charlotte tied the game late in the fourth and took as much as an eight-point lead before Russell took control. He’s now the first Nets player since Devin Harris (2008-2009) with multiple 40-point games in a season.
Only four other Brooklyn players tallied double-digit points scored, with Jarrett Allen notching his 19th double-double this year. He added point guard Kemba Walker to his star-studded list of victims he’s blocked this season.
Paint Protector ?@_bigjayy_ | #WeGoHard pic.twitter.com/Rak1QNYo2I
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) February 24, 2019
Elsewhere, recent three-point contest winner Joe Harris tallied 19 points on 5-for-7 shooting from the field.
QB #1 ↗️ WR #12 pic.twitter.com/1Zn8BryWow
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) February 24, 2019
Charlotte had a chance to steal the game on a Kemba Walker three-pointer, but Caris LeVert came up with the stop. The Hornets will fall to 28-31.
It’s a victory worth celebrating for more than one reason, as Brooklyn moves to 31-30 on the year. That puts them two games ahead of Charlotte, who is the East’s seventh seed.
Albeit unlikely, the Nets are inching closer and closer to the fifth-seed Boston Celtics who are coming off back-to-back losses to the Milwaukee Bucks and Chicago Bulls.
The postseason remains in play for the Nets, by a wide margin. Brooklyn will host the San Antonio Spurs on Monday. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.
