THROWBACK: When a Freshman Kevin Durant Put Up 37 Points in an Incredible Triple OT College Basketball Game

Kevin Durant is regarded as the greatest scorer in the modern game, and he took the NBA by storm ever since making his debut in 2007. KD’s pure shooting technique is unguardable, and Durant developed most of his skills as a freshman with the Texas Longhorns, where he also played in a college basketball game that will be remembered for ages! 

It is throwback time, and we head back to 2007 for this one. The Texas Longhorns visited the Oklahoma State Cowboys and two extraordinary players in Kevin Durant and Mario Boggan dueled it out to earn bragging rights! 

When Kevin Durant torched Oklahoma State but ended up losing the game

Kevin Durant played just one season for the Texas Longhorns. However, the towering forward made the most of his freshman season and left with a massive reputation to his name.

Durant starred in one of the best college basketball games ever played during his brief stint with the Longhorns on January 16, 2007, when his team traveled to Oklahoma to play the Cowboys. 

The thrilling encounter saw two top college programs battle it out for the win, but it couldn’t be settled in regulation time. Hence, the game went to overtime, not once, but thrice! Even after this, only a two-point margin split the two teams!

Oklahoma State walked away with the victory courtesy of a three-point winner from forward Mario Boggan, but it was plain agony for Kevin Durant, who matched his career-high with a 37 point performance while securing 12 rebounds.

Durant and Texas were overpowered by Oklahoma State, but KD showed tremendous resilience and kept postings buckets to stay alive in the game. However, there’s only much he could do as his opponents Boggan and Jameson Curry guided the Cowboys safely over the finish line. 

KD received immense praise after the triple-OT thriller

The Oklahoma State Cowboys ran away with the victory in emphatic fashion, and it came as a disappointment to the Texas Longhorns and its fans. It just wasn’t meant to be for Kevin Durant, who played so well the entire game. 

“Every time we scored, Durant would come back and make a play,” Boggan lauded Durant’s determination after the game. KD scored five points in the final minute of regulation to help Texas tie the game and earned the admiration of Cowboys’ coach Sean Sutton.

He ranked KD’s performance as one of the best he’s ever witnessed from an opponent and called him an “unreal talent.” 

Sutton didn’t go wrong with his choice of words as Kevin Durant joined the NBA in 2007 and instantly wowed everyone with his phenomenal skill-set. From being a skinny freshman with the Longhorns to winning back-to-back NBA championships, KD has seen it all as a professional.