EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.—Courtney Lee feels the game of his life is possible every time he absorbs the buzz betwen warmups and the opening tip. Friday night at the `IZOD Center, that confidence paid off for Lee and the Nets as the guard dropped a career-high 27 points to boost his team to its first victory of the season, a 97-91 defeat of the Bobcats.

And yet he deflected the attention toward his teammates like one of the errant passes he's so adept at intercepting (three steals).

"My teammates did a good job of spacing and creating and making plays for each other," Lee said. "That's one of the things we did better today. And when a guy made a play for another guy, not only (were) the guy that made the play and the guy that scored (excited), but everyone else on the team was, too."

Lee opened the game, Kiki Vandeweghe's first as head coach, by wetting a triple 19 seconds in. He finished the quarter with nine points and looked not only healthy, but more comfortable than he's ever been wearing a Nets uniform. Lee's five shots in the first included the opening three (make), a 22-foot pullup jumper (make), a fast-break layup while being fouled (make), a short one-handed floater (miss) and a driving layup after blowing by Boris Diaw off the dribble (make). He also assisted a Brook Lopez jumper after twice probing the defensive and being rebuffed.

Though quiet in the middle quarters, scoring only eight points total, Lee put up 10 in the fourth. None were more crucial than the four Lee scored in a 15-second span following a pair of Stephen Jackson threes that had tied the score at 86 with just under three minutes remaining. Jackson's cold-blooded catch-up – he was previously 1-for-5 – could have sucked the life out of a Nets team too used to breaks going against them.

But a possession at the other end resulted in Lee driving, drawing a foul and sinking both free throws. And then Lee played Jackson (28 points) perfectly on an attempted handoff with Diaw; when Jackson pulled up short, Lee was able to pick the pass, streaking downcourt for an unimpeded two-hand slam.

Now trailing by four, Jackson missed a three, and Nets point guard Devin Harris stepped back on Raymond Felton (28 points, 5 assists) at the three-point line, got fouled and sank all three free-throws. Lead extended to seven with 1 minute, 26 seconds to go, the Nets needed only four three throws to ensure they'd stave off the Bobcats and could celebrate for the first time this season.

And even with the lead extended to nine moments after Lee's dunk, the team fought every possession, with Harris diving into the fourth row while attempting to bounce a loose ball off Gerald Wallace (13 points, 20 rebounds). The referees initially ruled Nets ball, but overturned the call upon replay review. Another game, and maybe that's enough to sink their confidence, but not Friday night.

"That was a ball we needed in that point of time," Harris said. "It was an important ball, a loose ball, we needed that. I didn’t expect to go that far, but it was something that we needed. I wanted to show the guys how much we needed this game and how important it was to us."

The Nets earned this first victory despite shooting only .391 from the field and .333 from three, mostly behind Brook Lopez (yet another double-double, this time 31 points and 14 rebounds) and pressuring the Bobcats into 19 turnovers. Racking up 18 points by causing nine steals and blocking six shots, the Nets played fast enough to put up 15 more shots than the Bobcats, offsetting Charlotte's .452-.391 shooting percentage advantage by sinking one additional basket (34-33).

Free and easy from the jump, the Nets connected on two alley-oops in the first quarter, with Harris hitting Chris Douglas-Roberts and Lopez. They also amassed 19 fast-break points, eight in the first quarter. Harris, despite shooting 2-of-14, finished the game with eight assists and drew praise from Vandeweghe, who naturally shirked any accolades for his squad's successful debut.

"I want to say this, truly, that the coaching staff that was here, they did a great job," Vandeweghe said. "Wins don't happen off one practice, they're built up over time. I was happy for the players. I knew this was a bit of a struggle; I'm not going to sugarcoat it: it was tough."

NETS NOTES: Keyon Dooling and Tony Battie made their season debuts Friday. Dooling posted 5 points, 3 assists, and 2 steals in 16 minutes; Battie played five minutes, missing the only shot he took.

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