For the first time in 352 days, the Nets hosted real live fans at Barclays Center. And they did not disappoint.
Brooklyn won a 127-118 victory over Sacramento – a seventh in a row, and a gut check in a trap game he probably wouldn’t have missed a month ago.
“It simply came to our notice then. We have grown, we have gathered much more and you can only feel the energy among the players. The connection has been formed, “said coach Steve Nash.” You have to invest in that every day. The boys invest that energy and support in each other every night. And that makes it hard to beat. “
They were pretty tough on Tuesday. Brooklyn (21-12) retreated in the closing stages of the fourth quarter, using a 14-1 shot to turn a fingernail into another victory – and that had additional significance.
With the Empire State Building lit in black and white celebrating the occasion, the Nets brought fans to Barclays for the first time since March 8, 2020. That seemed like a lifetime ago, with Jacque Vaughn still as interim coach, Kevin Durant still not fit for Brooklyn , and James Harden was still struggling in Houston.
On Tuesday, a dominant Harden was the one who led the way with another triple-double (29 points, 14 assists and 11 rebounds). They also got an unexpected 29 from defenseman Bruce Brown, who had 3 back-to-backs to finish the run 14-1.
“It feels good. It gives us more confidence than we already had,” Brown said. “So we have to keep pushing and trying to get more wins.”
Brooklyn’s defense was lacking, leaving the Kings to shoot 51.2 percent behind De’Aaron Fox (27 points) and Tyrese Haliburton (23). But even without Durant, Jeff Green or Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot, the Nets did enough to win and stay halfway behind the 76ers in the east.
Brooklyn has the best record in the NBA against teams .500 and above, at a stellar 12-2. But the Nets’ 8-10 against the loss of enemies that came in on Tuesday showed why this was a trap – one that may not have been avoided before this recent change.
After Fox hit a 3-pointer with 7:07 to play, the Nets clung to a 110-109 lead that, at best, was weak. But then they took control, and Brown surprisingly led the way.
“He’s a guy who just goes out there and competes his ass every night and great things happen to him,” Harden said. “He sets up screens and rolls on the basket, he’s an incredible cutter and he showed us that he’s capable of knocking the ball down with 3. So he does everything. He pulls his ass even when you pull your tail and continue to grind and push good things. … I’m proud of him. ”
Brown hit two consecutive 3s, the second filling the pillow at 124-110 with 3:05 remaining. After being talked about garbage on the Kings bench, he celebrated with a bit of shyness and the Nets went on to win.
“At first they left me in transition, James found me. So once you see them coming in, you feel good, “Brown said, adding of his shyness.” They were talking crazy and it was my second. [3-pointer] so you know how banks work when you’re not pulling it right, you know what I’m saying. So I had to do something. ”
What he did was seal the game. A Nets team that allowed 66.7% to shoot in the second quarter doubled to keep Sacramento at just 35% in the fourth pivot.
“Defense in the fourth quarter [was the key]. I picked it up, held it until 22. I had a few late buckets and put her to bed, so I was proud of that, ”Nash said. “It simply came to our notice then. And I thought this was a trap game.
“You have a series of victories on the West Coast, you fly back all over the country, you settle in with family and friends, then with the time zone … and you play a team that you defeated a week ago. It’s a trap game. So I was proud of my concentration. It wasn’t always nice, but they wanted to win and stopped when they needed them. ”