David Moyes felt the midweek point against Spurs laid the foundations for a barnstorming performance at Crystal Palace.
Having drawn 0-0 against the men from White Hart Lane on Tuesday night, Sunderland raced out of the traps in an unforgettable first half at Selhurst Park.
Lamine Kone put the visitors ahead early on before Didier Ndong smashed home his first goal for the club.
Then Jermain Defoe took over with two goals – his 13th and 14th of the season – to put Sunderland out of sight by half time.
“It was a massive win for us; really important,” Moyes said afterwards.
"It was good, especially the support we had. With the way the game was set up – with us coming down, Sam [Allardyce] and Patrick [van Aanholt] – it was good to win it.
"We did a good job on Tuesday [against Spurs] and that gave us a little bit of confidence. We didn't play awfully well then but we were better today and passed the ball better.
"There were some really good goals and I'm pleased for the supporters to be able to come down here and see us get a good victory away from home.
"We took our chances. I thought we looked a much bigger threat all over the pitch.”
Defoe's brace took him to second place in the club's all-time Premier League scoring list - the former Spurs man now trails only Kevin Phillips.
And Moyes was quick to praise the frontman's contribution – plus that of the fans – as Sunderland recorded their biggest away victory since a win at Bradford by the same scoreline in 1999.
"Jermain is a predator and scores us goals, and it was good for Didier to get his first goal and Lamine to get one too.
"I asked the fans to show their colours and they certainly did that! They gave us great support as always and the team were great for them as well."
Having drawn 0-0 against the men from White Hart Lane on Tuesday night, Sunderland raced out of the traps in an unforgettable first half at Selhurst Park.
Lamine Kone put the visitors ahead early on before Didier Ndong smashed home his first goal for the club.
Then Jermain Defoe took over with two goals – his 13th and 14th of the season – to put Sunderland out of sight by half time.
“It was a massive win for us; really important,” Moyes said afterwards.
"It was good, especially the support we had. With the way the game was set up – with us coming down, Sam [Allardyce] and Patrick [van Aanholt] – it was good to win it.
"We did a good job on Tuesday [against Spurs] and that gave us a little bit of confidence. We didn't play awfully well then but we were better today and passed the ball better.
"There were some really good goals and I'm pleased for the supporters to be able to come down here and see us get a good victory away from home.
"We took our chances. I thought we looked a much bigger threat all over the pitch.”
Defoe's brace took him to second place in the club's all-time Premier League scoring list - the former Spurs man now trails only Kevin Phillips.
And Moyes was quick to praise the frontman's contribution – plus that of the fans – as Sunderland recorded their biggest away victory since a win at Bradford by the same scoreline in 1999.
"Jermain is a predator and scores us goals, and it was good for Didier to get his first goal and Lamine to get one too.
"I asked the fans to show their colours and they certainly did that! They gave us great support as always and the team were great for them as well."
