ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Kyrie Irving made it two nights in a row with a 60-point scorer in the NBA.
A 40-point first half hadn’t been seen in almost two decades.
Irving scored a career-high 60 points, most in the Nets’ NBA history, to lead Brooklyn to a 150-108 victory over the Orlando Magic on Tuesday night.
Irving shot 20 for 31, including 8 of 12 on 3-pointers, in 35 minutes. He made 12 of 13 free throws in matching the highest-scoring game in the NBA this season, from just a night earlier by Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns against San Antonio.
In other NBA action:
— Devin Booker had 27 points and eight assists in 30 minutes before getting the rest of the night off, and the Phoenix Suns beat the New Orleans Pelicans 131-115. Mikal Bridges went four of five from 3-point range and scored 20 for the Suns, who won for the fourth time in five games. The Suns hit 18 3-pointers and converted 17 Pelicans turnovers into 33 points.
— Max Strus scored all of his 16 points in the fourth quarter, Tyler Herro finished with a game-high 29 off the bench and the Miami Heat escaped with a 105-98 win over the Detroit Pistons. Strus, playing in the second half after Jimmy Butler left the game with a sprained ankle, scored 13 of his points in a span of 2:55 of the final quarter to help Miami rally. Jerami Grant led the Pistons with 22 points.
— Desmond Bane scored 21 points, Jaren Jackson Jr. had 19 and the Memphis Grizzlies rolled without All-Star Ja Morant, beating the Indiana Pacers 135-102. De’Anthony Melton added 18 points while Morant sat out with back soreness. The Grizzlies made the decision to hold him out after he went through pregame warmups. It was the fourth consecutive victory for the Grizzlies
Magic: Injured Isaac won’t return to play this season
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Jonathan Isaac’s return to the Orlando Magic won’t happen this season.
The Magic announced the decision Tuesday. It means the earliest the 24-year-old Isaac will play is October. He last played in August 2020 when he tore the ACL in his left knee during a game at the NBA’s restart bubble in Walt Disney World.
If the 6-foot-10 forward is ready to begin when next season starts in mid-October, it would end a rehab and recovery period that will have lasted more than 26 months.
