Kyrie Irving, Kevin Durant too much for Cleveland Cavaliers, as Brooklyn Nets win 125-117

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Kyrie Irving silenced the crowd.

With his All-Star teammate Kevin Durant on the bench with six fouls, Irving helped stymie the Cleveland Cavaliers’ valiant fourth-quarter comeback attempt, leading the Nets to a 125-117 win over his old team. Brooklyn has won nine games in a row — and is just the second Eastern Conference team to win at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse this season. The Cavs have lost two straight.

During Monday’s pregame intros, there was a smattering of cheers for Irving — the former Cavalier great who played a starring role in the franchise’s lone NBA title in 2016 — but those were mostly drowned out by the booming boos, which carried over into the first possession.

Irving got the final word.

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He repeatedly hit clutch shots at critical moments — just like his Cleveland Finals run. Irving finished with 32 points, including 15 in the fourth quarter, on 11 of 19 shooting and 7 of 11 from 3-point range.

After one of his ruthless triples, barely in front of the Cavaliers’ midcourt logo at the 10:13 mark of the fourth quarter, Irving posed and celebrated while Durant signaled for Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff to call timeout. That long-range jumper gave the Nets a game-high 19-point lead.

But the Cavs started surging back from there. It became a point guard duel.

Cleveland All-Star Darius Garland, Irving’s successor who had a spectacular night, pulled Cleveland within seven around the four-minute mark of the fourth quarter. Irving answered with a corner dagger. But the Cavs kept coming. They pulled within four in the final minute. Irving once again responded with two clutch free throws to give the Nets another six-point cushion.

The Cavs didn’t get any closer.

Earlier in the game, Irving helped Brooklyn finish the second quarter on a 21-6 surge in less than four minutes. He scored 12 points during that vintage stretch, giving the Nets firm control going into the half.

Durant matched Irving with 32 points before fouling out late in the game. T.J. Warren chipped in with 23 off the bench.

Bickerstaff spoke about wanting to make the game dirty and ugly. It was Cleveland’s best chance against the starry Nets. Ugly is right. For everyone but Garland.

The youngster poured in a game-high 46 points, trying to will the offensively-challenged Cavs back into the game throughout. It’s Garland’s fourth career 40-point game — and third one this season.

Quiet for a second consecutive game, Donovan Mitchell finished with 15 points. Evan Mobley chipped in with 12. Cedi Osman (11) and Jarrett Allen (10) also reached double figures.

Irving was back in the building where he became a franchise legend Monday night. When he touched down in Cleveland, the memories rushed back.

Now he’s got another fond memory to take back with him.

Still waiting

Injured point guard Ricky Rubio, who continues to work his way back following January ACL surgery, will not play before the end of this year, Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff said prior to Monday’s game. Rubio has been sidelined for nearly a year and the internal target has consistently been some point in January. While he continues to make steady progress, conducting individual workouts, Cleveland’s limited practice days are making it tough for Rubio to get the 5-on-5 work he needs to clear the final hurdle.

Up next

The Cavs will hit the road for two games. The first comes against the Indiana Pacers on Thursday night. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.

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