NBA: Kevin Durant drops league-best 51 points in win at Detroit

Brooklyn Nets superstar forward Kevin Durant scored a methodical 51 points in a 116-104 win over the Pistons on Sunday night at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit. Durant shot 16/31 from the field and 5/10 from 3-point range, while knocking down 14/15 free throws. The 11x All-Star also recorded nine assists, seven rebounds, and two blocks in the memorable showing. Detroit led 91-86 after three quarters but Brooklyn pulled away late with a 19-1 run to start the fourth quarter. KD played nearly the entire second half before being pulled following one final mid-range jumper with a minute left. The 51-point performance was the most of any NBA player this season, slightly clipping Stephen Curry's explosive 50 points in November.

Durant has scored 50+ in eight games during his legendary career and has finished with 51 points three times. He is also just the sixth player in league history to hit the half-century mark with three different franchises. It was tied for the 5th highest total in Nets history with Vince Carter and Caris LeVert as Deron Williams (57) and Kyrie Irving (54) hold the top spots. Durant also set the Little Caesars Arena scoring record, previously held by current teammate Blake Griffin. KD missed his first five attempts but quickly got into a groove and picked up the slack with James Harden missing his first game of the year. Patty Mills contributed 18 points and five assists in the win, while Cade Cunningham had a team-high 26 points and eight rebounds.

“If we play great defense then we have a little more freedom on the offensive end. It starts with me as the guy to set the tone on both sides of the ball so I try to do that as much as possible," Durant said in the postgame press conference on Sunday. Nets head coach Steve Nash also discussed the 51-point game: "It was unbelievable. He had it going. Durant had the look in his eyes that he wasn’t going to come out so we tried to ride him there." The 2014 MVP was also creating for others at a high level as he helped LaMarcus Aldridge and Cam Thomas get involved throughout. Brooklyn will return home to face the Raptors and 76ers this week. Durant will meet the Pistons again at the Barclays Center in late March.

Photo Credit: USA Today.