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| Mirza looks like he may be starting to turn the proverbial corner |
7 games since the embarrasing New Years' Eve loss to the Spurs. 7 games since 2013 began. 7 games since the Nets have lost. The seven-game winning streak our Brooklyn Nets are currently riding, thanks to a comeback win at the Barclays Center tonight over the Toronto Raptors, has been nothing short of stellar and exactly what the doctor ordered. Sure, it hasn't been against the best competition but a win still is a win, whether it's against the Thunder or the Wizards. You win the games you play and obviously can't win the games you aren't scheduled for.
With that aside, the Nets overcame a 10-point 2nd quarter deficit against the Raps in order to move just two games behind the mighty Heat in the Eastern Conference standings and one and a half behind the Atlantic Division-leading Knicks. As has been the case in recent games, Brooklyn didn't look great in the 1st quarter, falling behind by around five points most of the period before they fought back to a tie game on the strength of a few tough drives from D-Will and MarShon and a classic Andray Blatche ugly-but-effective jumper.
The 2nd quarter kicked off much like the 1st, with the young and athletic Raptors flying all around the court with tons of energy, en route to running out to a 13-3 run to take a 10-point lead (40-30). Surprising contributions from Reggie Evans' son Quincy Acy (obviously not his son, but you'd understand the reference if you looked at pictures of the two) and Amir Johnson made the Nets look sluggish and overmatched against a team that has been playing better ball over the last few weeks. Then, a two-pair of D-Will made free throws–extending his consecutive free-throw make streak–turned the tide of the game, catapulting Brooklyn to a 7-0 spurt, capped off by a Mirza three-pointer. A pair of additional Mirza threes a few minutes later would go on to tie the game and eventually hand the Nets a lead they would take into halftime.
Weathering a few quick jumpers by DeMar DeRozan and Jose Calderon to start off the 3rd, the Nets were able to maintain their slim lead, which would be broken open for good at the 4:35 mark with back-to-back Deron and Joe three-pointers, extending the Toronto deficit to seven points, roughly where it would stay for the remainder. The momentum gained from the successful 3rd period extended into the 4th, where Blatche and MarShon did their normal scoring thing to put the game out of reach for good, save a fruitless comeback attempt by the Raptors in the wee minutes of the game.
Some other observations I had from the game: Another (I know I keep saying this) all-around wonderful effort from the whole team. Gerald Wallace was out yet again but the defense didn't significantly suffer from his absence, at least according to me, and when it did in pockets, someone on the floor picked it up……Toronto shot 48.8 percent, still way too high for the Nets to be giving up. Also, 50+ percent from behind the arc is too high for a bad team like the Raptors to be shooting in the Barclays Center. Granted, Jose Calderon and Kyle Lowry are noted Net-killers. That has been taken into account…..Brook scored 22 points, grabbed nine rebounds (!), hit all 10 (!) of his free throws, and didn't commit any turnovers. Near-perfect performance…..D-Will and Joe each scored 21, both shooting at or near 50 percent from the field. Fair to say they are getting used to each other and are becoming more familar with PJ's system…..Mirza scored 10 points in 22 minutes, also nabbing four boards. Played well off the three-point line too…..Reggie Evans had seven rebounds in 22 minutes. The usual…..'Dray Blatche scored 14 on 7-10 shooting. C.J. had nine. MarShon with seven. Not easy to find a more consistent bench than this one….Just five minutes for Hump…..Nets are 9-1 under PJ. Considering strength of schedule, still not a coincidence.
Looking Ahead
The Nets fly down to Atlanta to face plenty of old teammates on the Hawks. Plus, Joe Johnson's first game in front of his old home crowd and old team since this summer's trade.
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