Kyrie’s season-high 50 help Nets snap slide at 4

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving went off for a season high 50 points in Tuesday’s 132-121 win over the Charlotte Hornets.

Irving started the game in rhythm and kept knocking down shots all night, going 15-for-19 from the field and 9-for-12 from beyond the arc and 11-for-13 from the free throw line. Irving carried the Nets, who came into the night having lost 17 of their last 20, to a much needed win on a night when star forward Kevin Durant scored just 14 points.

Irving’s offensive brilliance was on full display all night as he hit an array of shots from all over the floor as his teammates continued to look for him and help him get looks. Irving also chipped in six assists and two rebounds in 37 minutes of play. Irving got a standing ovation from many within the Charlotte crowd after scoring one more floater that brought his total for the night up to 50.

Irving’s performance comes just a couple days after he struggled through an 8-for-18 performance during a loss to the Boston Celtics on Sunday and turned the ball over three times.

The Nets are now a game ahead of the Hornets for the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference and have a 33-33 record heading into Thursday’s showdown with former teammate James Harden and the Philadelphia 76ers. Following Thursday’s game, Irving, who is not vaccinated against COVID-19, will not be eligible to play again until next Tuesday’s game against the Orlando Magic because of the New York City vaccination mandate. The Nets play against the New York Knicks in Madison Square Garden on Sunday afternoon.

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