With 40 points, Kevin Durant leads Rockets’ epic rally in Orlando
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At 37 years old and on night two of a back-to-back in two different cities, All-Star forward Kevin Durant would not be denied in Houston’s 113-108 victory (box score) at Orlando.
The Rockets (37-21) remain at No. 3 in the Western Conference standings, while the Magic (31-27) are at No. 7 in the East. Houston is now 4-1 since the NBA’s 2026 All-Star break and is 14-6 in its last 20 games.
After starting 0-of-7 from 3-point range, Durant finished with a game-high 40 points and 8 rebounds, making 14-of-28 shots (50.0%) and all 10 of his free throws. He also drilled a pair of second-half 3-pointers as the Rockets rallied back from a 19-point deficit in the third quarter.
Other statistical standouts in Thursday’s game included:
- Reed Sheppard: 20 points, 4 assists; 7-of-11 shooting (63.6%), 5-of-7 on 3-pointers (71.4%)
- Alperen Sengun: 16 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assistsl 8-of-15 shooting (53.3%)
- Desmond Bane (Magic): 30 points, 6 rebounds; 12-of-19 shooting (63.2%), 6-of-10 on 3-pointers (60.0%)
- Paolo Banchero (Magic): 19 points, 9 assists, 8 rebounds; 6-of-16 shooting (37.5%), 0-of-2 on 3-pointers
Jabari Smith Jr. (13 points, 6-of-7 shooting) left early with an apparent ankle injury, and Rockets head coach Ime Udoka said he would be “game to game” moving forward, in terms of availability.
Thursday’s game was the opener of a three-game East Coast road trip for the Rockets, who play at Miami (31-29) on Saturday and at Washington (16-42) on Monday.
"I'm just honored and blessed and grateful for all of the people that invested in me along the way."
KD on becoming the 6th player in NBA history to reach 32,000 career points 🌟 https://t.co/qEuXPHQonTpic.twitter.com/gQUJM31tgQ— NBA (@NBA) February 27, 2026
40 points in a win on the second night of a back to back. Just amazing. It was people really saying the Rockets shouldn’t have traded for an All Time great player still playing at an elite level.
You make that trade 100 out of 100 times. pic.twitter.com/V0JJKfmk5m— Lachard Binkley (@BinkleyHoops) February 27, 2026
Durant now with 32,006 pts, 286 pts behind Michael Jordan for 5th most all-time. #AllFirehttps://t.co/b5p9jo1is5— Adam Wexler (@AdamJWexler) February 27, 2026
Reed Sheppard off the bench:
20 PTS
2 STL
2 BLK
7-11 FG
5-7 3P
Back-to-back 20-point games for the first time in his career. pic.twitter.com/ELZatE3BM4— StatMuse (@statmuse) February 27, 2026
This article originally appeared on Rockets Wire: With 40 points, Kevin Durant leads Rockets’ epic rally in Orlando
