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| 16 points and 16 rebounds just weren't enough to push the Nets over the top tonight in Brooklyn against the Bucks |
Well, I'm not exactly sure what to make of that game. The Nets frenetically cut a 29-point Milwaukee third quarter lead down to six with a few minutes left in the final quarter, but just couldn't get enough stops down the stretch to overcome their deficit completely to get a much-needed win. After a quick 11-2 run to lead off the game by the Nets, it looked like they went back into bed for a nap and essentially slept through the next few quarters, only waking up a little bit late in the third quarter, cutting the monstrous Milwaukee lead from 29 points to 20. Then, following a presumably heated and feverishly angry quarter break speech by Avery Johnson to his team, the Nets looked like a brand new team entirely.
They started to force the Bucks into taking bad shots, rebounded wonderfully both offensively and defensively, and took much higher percentage shots. By roughly the midpoint of the final period, Brooklyn had cut Milwaukee's lead to almost half its original status, with the score at 82-70. At this point was when the Barclays Center crowd really got into the game, egging on their home team to neutralize their brutal first half effort by having an incredible second half, and hopefully coming out of the game with a win, snapping their three-game overall losing streak and 11-game losing skid to the Bucks specifically.
However, all of that hope would all be for naught as the Nets would only come within six points of Milwaukee at best, as their defense just couldn't play well enough to get the necessary stops needed to hold off the Bucks. D-Will would hit a three to put the Nets down eight, and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute would hit a short, open jumper. Kris Humphries would get an easy dunk off a sick D-Will pass, and Monta Ellis would drill a lightly-contested lane floater. MrShon Brooks would hit a huge three-pointer, and Marquis Daniels would respond with one of his own. That's how the end of tonight's game went, and simply exchanging baskets wasn't enough for the Nets to crawl back into taking the lead. Too little too late.
Overall, a thoroughly disappointing effort by the Nets in a game they should have, and needed to, win. Milwaukee is an okay team, but is one that the Nets–if they want to be a legitimate contender–need to win, especially at home.
Some other observations I had from the game: Joe Johnson scored eight points on 2-8 shooting……Gerald Wallace was crazy good, scoring 16 points, grabbing 16 boards, and generally crashing everywhere like the awesome crazy person he is. By far the best–and most engaged–Net on the court tonight…..Didn't get a whole lot from Blatche and Reggie. Reggie did nab nine boards but committed five costly turnovers and Andray scored 11 points but was toyed around with by the Milwaukee bigs and put up a nauseatingly low +/- of -16…..Hump didn't fare much better in his abnormal bench appearance. Had seven rebounds but shot 2-8 and continued to look more timid than the Hump we are used to….Avery's weird little brain finally told him to play MarShon a lot tonight, and he did. Brooks scored 14 points in 21 minutes and provided the initial offensive spark the Nets needed to make their comeback in the first place. Words can't describe how much I dislike/am confused by/disagree with Avery's rotations, exacerbated by the fact that MarShon could go five games without getting more than eight minutes of PT.
Looking Ahead
Knicks at Barclays on Tuesday. Nets lose, they are 11-9. They win, are 12-8 and will have beaten their division leaders twice already. Can I say must-win yet again?
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