Nets Can't Stop Losing Streak Against Bucks

sbnation.com

Nets vs. Bucks Post Game Recap 12/9

The Brooklyn Nets woes continued on Sunday at the Barclays Center losing to the Milwaukee Bucks 97-88, as the Nets are now on a four game losing streak, and have lost four out of five games without Brook Lopez.

The Nets star backcourt of Deron Williams and Joe Johnson were outplayed by their counterparts on the Bucks in Brandon Jennings and Monta Ellis who combined for 50 points to just the 24 that Williams and Johnson were able to score.

The best player for the Nets in the starting lineup was by far Gerald Wallace who had a monster double-double scoring 16 points on six for 12 shooting to go along with a season-high 16 rebounds.

The starting lineup saw a shakeup at the power forward position from Avery Johnson, as Kris Humphries was moved to the bench, and Reggie Evans moved into the starting five. The move didn’t make much of a difference for the Nets however, as Humphries had four points and seven rebounds, and Evans had five points with nine rebounds, and four steals.

MarShon Brooks was finally given some minutes in this game, and was one of the main reasons for the Nets comeback attempt after being down by 29 points Brooks led the Nets off the bench scoring 14 points on four for five shooting, and was perfect at the free throw line going five for five.

The Nets will have a tough task on Tuesday trying to snap their losing streak at home against the New York Knicks and Carmelo Anthony in the second round of the East River Rivalry.

Nets Can't Handle the Heat in Miami

sun-sentinel.com

Nets vs. Heat Post Game Recap 12/1

The Nets were unable to handle the Heat in South Beach without Lopez, as their winning streak has been snapped at five games with the 102-89 loss on Saturday night.

After a very good first half for the Nets it was the polar opposite in the second half, as with their fifth game in seven days the Nets looked tired and were hammered after halftime being outscored 52-30.

The Miami Heat’s two superstars LeBron James and Dwayne Wade came to play against the Nets with both of them having great games. Wade was the leading scoring in the game putting up 34 points on 14 for 20 shooting with seven assists. James had one of his classic overall good games scoring 21 points on eight for 15 shooting with nine rebounds and six assists.

The Nets were led on offense by Andray Blatche getting his second straight start for the injured Lopez, as Blatche had yet another strong game scoring a team-high 20 points on eight for 12 shooting with eight rebounds.

Deron Williams shooting woes continue to hamper his play, as Williams only scored 11 points on a bad three for 11 shooting, but did notch his seven double-double of the season which leads the team because Williams did a good job setting up teams earning him 12 assists.

Joe Johnson had yet another poor game against the Heat like earlier in the season, as Johnson who has been playing well didn’t do that on Saturday only scoring 12 points on five for 14 shooting, as in two games against the Heat Johnson is only nine for 28.

Gerald Wallace had another pretty good on the offensive end despite not shooting the ball from three-point land well only going one for six, Wallace was able to score 13 points on five for 11 shooting with nine rebounds.

The Nets will have another tough task on Tuesday night, as they will have to play last years Western Conference Champions the Oklahoma City Thunder and their superstar Kevin Durant, with it still being unclear weather or not Brook Lopez will be playing.

Nets Beat Magic to Extend Winning Streak

sbnation.com

Nets vs. Magic Post Game Recap 11/30

The Nets were able to go down to Florida and keep their winning streak alive making it five straight wins by beating the Magic 98-86, as the Nets finish off a great month of November going 11-4.

The Nets were led by another stellar game from Joe Johnson who has played much better in four of his last five games. Johnson scored a game-high 22 points on 10 for 16 shooting, and added five assists.

With Brook Lopez sitting out with his foot injury Gerald Wallace really picked up the scoring slack for the Nets. Wallace caught fire from the field scoring 20 points on seven for nine shooting including five for six from beyond the arc.

Andray Blatche seemed to slide into the starting rotation at center for Lopez with no problem, as Blatche continued his good play this time with the starting five by scoring 14 points on six for 14 shooting, and also grabbed nine rebounds.

Deron Williams with his banged up wrist didn’t look for his shot to much in the game only shooting the ball nine times, but did only have to play 30 minutes much less than normal, and hopefully the wrist will heal soon for Deron.

The bench unit without Blatche didn’t do much scoring, but Reggie Evans once again had a great rebounding game off the bench grabbing 10 rebounds making it his fifth straight game with double-digit rebounds.

The Nets will be in for a big test on Saturday against the defending world champion Miami Heat team, as the Nets will be without Brook Lopez and their winning streak maybe in serious jeopardy.

Nets Survive a Fight in Boston

nydailynews.com

Nets vs. Celtics Post Game Recap 11/28

The Brooklyn Nets were able to pick up their 4th straight win in Boston over the Celtics 95-83, as the Nets showed that they are in fact a good team, and won’t be pushed around by the Celtics.

The Nets showed some serious toughness in the second quarter after a harmless Kris Humphries foul on Kevin Garnett lead to Rajon Rondo pushing Humphries in to the stands with a semi-brawl starting out, as Gerald Wallace got involved with Rondo and Garnett coming to the aid of Humphries. The fighting led to Rondo being ejected for the Celtics, and Humphries and Wallace being ejected for the Nets.

On a basketball note the fighting overshadowed an impressive win for the Nets who after a big win over the Knicks at home went up to Boston and won by double-digits, and had a 16 point lead at the time of the ejections.

Joe Johnson picked up the slack for the Nets after the ejections of two members of their starting five, as Johnson bounced back from a poor game against the Knicks to lead the Nets in scoring with 18 points on six for 14 shooting, and added six assists with four rebounds.

Deron Williams struggles with shooting the ball continues due to the right wrist injury, as Williams only scored eight points on three for 12 shooting, and could probably use some time off to get the wrist right.

Brook Lopez had to leave the game early after hurting his foot in the third quarter, and is expected to miss two games, but on a note the injury doesn’t appear to be related to the one that kept him out most of last year. Before Lopez had to leave the game he was having one of his better rebounding games of the season, as he had 10 rebounds in just 17 minutes.

With most of the starting lineup having to leave the game early the Nets got a huge lift from their bench which outscored the Celtics bench by a huge 52-18 margin.

Jerry Stackhouse has certainly found the fountain of youth with his second straight monster game off the bench, as Stackhouse went five for six from downtown with a couple of free throws for 17 points.

Andray Blatche with no Lopez or Humphries for most of the game made the most of getting his extra minutes. Blatche had a nice double-double off the bench scoring 17 points on seven for 14 shooting with 13 rebounds.

Up next for the Nets will be the Orlando Magic, as the Nets will look to keep their winning streak going, and avoid a let down against a poor Magic team.

Nets Down Knicks in Overtime

ph.sports.yahoo.com

Nets vs. Knicks Post Game Recap 11/26

The Brooklyn Nets were able to win the first battle for New York against the Knicks in overtime 96-89, as with the win the Nets and Knicks are now both (9-4) atop the Atlantic Division.

Deron Williams despite the sprained wrist lead to another poor shooting game came thru in the clutch for Brooklyn while notching his sixth double-double of the season. Williams scored 16 points on 6 for 17 shooting, but had a season-high 14 assists, and was getting M-V-P chants while icing the game for the Nets at the line in overtime.

Center Brook Lopez in a battle with last years defensive player of the year Tyson Chandler had yet another great game offensively. Lopez finished the game scoring 22 points on nine for 20 shooting with 11 rebounds, and five blocks.

Joe Johnson who looked like he was starting to find his groove after two big games of scoring fell short in the big game against the Knicks. Johnson only scored eight points on three for 12 shooting.

Gerald Wallace had his best game of the season contributing on the offensive and defensive end of the court. Wallace finished with a season high 16 points on six for 13 shooting, and added two steals and two blocks.

The bench for the Nets outplayed the bench for the Knicks led by Jerry Stackhouse who at the young age of 38 showed he’s still got some game left in the tank. Stackhouse outscored the Knicks bench on his own, as he finished with 14 points on four for six shooting with all four baskets being three-pointers. Reggie Evans also had yet another monster game of rebounding, as he grabbed 14 rebounds in just 18 minutes.

The Nets will have to turn their attention to yet another Atlantic Division opponent, as they will be facing the Boston Celtics on Wednesday who will be looking to avenge the loss the Nets handed them earlier in the season.

Nets Rally Late to Beat Trail Blazers

blazersedge.com

Nets vs. Trail Blazers Post Game Recap 11/25

The Brooklyn Nets were able to pickup their second straight win beating the Portland Trail Blazers 98-85, as the Trail Blazers were without their star power forward LaMarcus Aldridge who sat out with back spasms.

The Nets were led by shooting guard Joe Johnson who had his second straight nice game, as it seems he is starting to get into a groove with his new team. Johnson led the Nets in scoring with 21 points on 10 for 19 shooting, and added four assists.

Deron Williams who is still banged up, and far from 100 percent healthy didn’t shoot the ball well again, but that didn’t stop him from recording his 5th double-double of the season. Williams finished scoring 15 points on four for 13 shooting, but had 12 assists, and a career-high four blocks.

Kris Humphries had a solid game for Brooklyn notching a double-double with 14 points on seven for nine shooting, and had 10 rebounds.

Gerald Wallace had a disappointing first game against is former team, as Wallace missed his first seven shots from the field finishing the game going one for eight with only two points, and a rebound.

Brook Lopez had another strong game continuing his good start to the season thus far, as Lopez scored 15 points on seven for 14 shooting with eight rebounds, and two blocks.

Reggie Evans had yet another strong game off the bench rebounding, as in just 22 minutes Evans grabbed 14 rebounds making it three out of the last four games Evans has had double-digit rebounds.

Next up for the Nets will be the New York Knicks on Monday in the Barclays Center in the highly anticipated match-up that was postponed due to Hurricane Sandy.

Nets Lose Final Game on West Coast Trip

sfgate.com

Nets vs. Warriors Post Game Recap 11/21

The Nets finished up their three game west coast trip losing to the Golden State Warriors 102-93, as the Nets finished the west coast trip only winning one out of the three games.

The Nets got off to a hot start shooting 73 percent in the first quarter, and a 30-18 lead heading into the second quarter, but went cold after that. The third quarter once again was a killer for the Nets, as they continue to be the worst third quarter team in the NBA by getting outscored 33-20.

Offensively the Nets were lead by their young center Brook Lopez who shot the ball very well from the field, as he scored a team high 22 points on 10 for 16 shooting, but Lopez didn’t contribute much on the boards only grabbing three.

The backcourt match-up of Deron Williams and Joe Johnson vs. Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson went in the favor of the young Golden State back court in a big way.

Deron Williams who is battling an elbow injury only scored nine points, and shot four for 12 from the field, and couldn’t stop the Warriors point guard Curry who scored a game-high 25 points on seven for 13 shooting.

The Johnson vs. Thompson match-up was just as bad for the Nets, as the point guard match-up was. Johnson continued his poor play thus far this season, as he scored 13 points on five for 13 shooting, and let the young Thompson score 23 points on 10 for 19 shooting.

Gerald Wallace and Jerry Stackhouse both sat out this game to rest for the upcoming home-stand, as without Wallace the Nets are a noticeably worse team on the defensive end of the court.

On the second game of the back to back Avery Johnson used eight guys off the bench, and got good minutes from Andray Blatche who scored 11 points with seven rebounds, and four assists. MarShon Brooks also played good off the bench scoring nine points on four for eight shooting, and added two steals.

The Nets will be heading back home to the Barclays Center where they have played good this season, as they will be facing the Clippers which means the Chris Paul Deron Williams match-up will be in the spotlight.

Nets Winning Streak Snapped by Lakers

nymag.com

Nets vs. Lakers Post Game Recap 11/20

The Nets were unable to hold a fourth quarter lead in the Staples Center against the Lakers, as the Nets five game winning streak came to an end losing to the Lakers and their new coach Mike D’Antoni 95-90.

In the anticipated match-up of centers Dwight Howard and Brook Lopez the Nets center did very well against the person he highly rumored to be traded for in the off-season. Lopez finished the game against the best defensive center in basketball scoring 23 points on 11 for 18 shooting, and grabbed seven rebounds.

Deron Williams had a double-double scoring 22 points, and dishing out 10 assists, but Williams did not shoot the ball well going 6 for 18 on Tuesday night.

The other part of Brooklyn’s star backcourt Joe Johnson like Williams didn’t shoot the ball well from the field continuing the trend of the season so far for Johnson, as Johnson scored 14 points on 6 for 16 shooting, but did dish out six assists. Johnson was outplayed badly by Kobe Bryant, as the Black Mamba had 25 points on 8 for 15 shooting.

Nets small forward Gerald Wallace made his presence felt on the defensive end of the court, as Wallace was able to get five steals, and three blocks both season highs for Wallace thus far.

The second half for the Nets was not good, as they shot 1 for 13 from beyond the arc, and only scored 33 points in the second half making it very hard to win games when u score under 40 points in a half.

The Brooklyn Nets will look to bounce back in the second game of the back to back, as they will be facing the Golden State Warriors in the final game of their west coast trip on Wednesday.

Bench Leads Nets Past Kings

Brooklyn Nets vs. Sacramento Kings Post Game Recap 11/18

The Brooklyn Nets were able to start their three game west coast trip with a win against the Kings beating them 99-90 despite the Nets starting five playing pretty poorly for the most part.

Deron Williams even though being banged up was one of the starters who actually played well against the Kings, as Deron filled out a nice stat sheet with 14 points, 10 assists, and five rebounds, but didn’t shoot it well from the field only going 4 for 12.

The other part of Brooklyn’s backcourt Joe Johnson had his worst game of the season thus far going a horrendous 1 for 10 from the field only scoring 10 points.

In the match-up of two young centers Brook Lopez was outplayed by DeMarcus Cousins, as Lopez only had 13 points on 5 for 14 shooting with five rebounds compared to Cousins who had 29 points on 12 for 21 shooting with seven rebounds.

Gerald Wallace made his return to the lineup after missing six games with a sprained ankle, but didn’t do much in his return only getting four points to go along with his four turnovers.

The Nets bench left its mark on this game with three great games from Andray Blatche, MarShon Brooks, and C.J. Watson. Blatche lead the Nets in scoring having a remarkable game scoring 22 points on 11 for 12 shooting. The backcourt combo of Brooks, and Watson both also scored very well scoring a combined 27 points on 9 for 15 shooting, as the bench unit was the real difference in the game.

The Nets next game will be against the Lakers in the Staples Center, as they will be facing the man that they most coveted in the off-season Dwight Howard.

Nets Win Shootout Against Cavs

toledoblade.com

Nets vs. Cavaliers Post Game Recap 11/13

The Nets were able to win their third straight game in a high scoring game against the young Cleveland Cavaliers 114-101, as the Nets improve to (4-2) on the season.

A much anticipated match-up between Nets star point guard Deron Williams, and one of the best young players in the league Kyrie Irving lived up to the hype with both players putting up eye popping stats. Deron Williams had his best game of the season thus far notching a double-double with 26 points on 10 for 20 shooting, and added 10 assists. Even though Deron had a nice game he was outplayed by Kyrie Irving who had 34 points on 9 for 19 shooting, and eight assists.

The center match-up of Brook Lopez and Anderson Varejao also turned out to be a great one in this game. Lopez played well scoring 23 points on 10 for 14 shooting with seven rebounds, and four blocks. As well as Lopez played it was seemed like nothing compared to Varejao who very well may have had the best game of his career on Tuesday scoring 35 points on 16 for 21 shooting, and grabbed 18 rebounds in the monster double-double.

The difference maker in the game was Joe Johnson who hasn’t played well heading into Tuesday, but got it going for the Nets. Johnson scored 25 points on 9 for 16 shooting with six assists, and five rebounds. Johnson had an amazing fourth quarter scoring 16 points with three straight three-pointers.

The Nets bench played well against a poor Cavaliers second unit, as Andray Blatche lead the Nets bench with a very good game scoring 13 points on 4 for 7 shooting, and added five rebounds with three blocks.

Gerald Wallace and MarShon Brooks both did not play again with their sprained ankles, as it was Wallace’s fifth straight game out, and the third straight for Brooks.

The Nets will look to continue their winning ways at home on Thursday, as the Boston Celtics will be coming to the Barclays Center.