Nets Burn Out in 4th, Can't Close Out Heat
February 17, 2010
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.—Wednesday at the IZOD Center, the Nets came out strong to start the fourth quarter, going on a 14-4 run to take a six-point lead against the Heat with just under six minutes to play. But they missed their next 11 shots as the Heat closed on a 13-4 run, winning 87-84. Kris Humphries missed a go-ahead layup in the final 30 seconds when his shot was blocked on a close non-call for goaltending.
For the full recap, read Bob Considine's story on NBA.com: Click Here
Nets Burn Out in 4th, Can't Catch Heat
Wednesday night at the IZOD Center, Keyon Dooling converted a three-point play, topping off a 14-4 run and giving the Nets a six-point lead against the Heat with 5 minutes, 46 seconds remaining. But Dooling, who finished with 14 points, was substituted out at the next dead ball – 15 seconds later – and by the time he returned, the Nets had missed eight straight shots, ceding the advantage to Miami.
The Heat pulled away to win, 87-84, as the Nets missed another three shots before Dooling's layup at the buzzer was goaltended, capping the missed field-goal streak at 11 and the Heat's game-ending response at 13-4. None of the misses proved more damaging than forward Kris Humphries' layup attempt with 27.3 seconds on the clock and the Nets trailing by 1.
Humphries drove right from the top of key, met at the rim by Heat center Jermaine O'Neal, who rose for a block. The ball squeaked by and bounced off the backboard. As it bounced back, Heat forward Michael Beasley – flying in to help – swatted it into the glass, seemingly a goaltend. Quentin Richardson corralled the loose ball, was fouled and sank both shots, extending the Heat lead to three.
Replays showed O'Neal tipped the ball into the backboard, which negated the potential goaltending violation.
"I didn't see it," Humphries said. "I thought I brought it to the backboard. I've got to go dunk that. Regardless of what the call is, that's on me."
The miss marred an energetic performance by the Nets' sub, who pulled down a team-high 12 rebounds, though he shot 1-for-7 as the Nets finished 30-of-84 (.357) from the field. Brook Lopez was the only Net to shoot 50 percent from the floor, sinking 10-of-20 baskets to score a game-high 26 points, adding 10 rebounds to post his 18th "20-10" double-double of the season.
The sophomore center has now tallied 25-or-more points 12 times this season after doing so three times this season. Wednesday, Lopez had 11 points at the half, but took off in the third. He scored 11 of the Nets' 21 points in the period, shooting 4-of-7 and converting two three-point plays.
When Lopez threw down an alley-oop moments into the fourth quarter (courtesy of Terrence Williams), it gave him one such dunk in each period. But that proved not only Lopez's final basket, but also his final attempt, save for a missed tip. Point guard Devin Harris said afterward that the offense stagnated and become one-dimensional, especially considering the shots they did get weren't falling.
"I thought we went a little too much pick-and-roll, and probably should've went a little more to Brook," Harris said. "That's something I'll take responsibility on. He was having a good game – we should've played a little bit more through him."
Defensively Determind
The Nets began playing stronger defense during the stretch leading into the All-Star Break, and they again played well Wednesday, limiting the Heat to .392 shooting. Though the Heat did connect on 5-of-14 three-pointers (.357), the Nets outscored them 50-26 on points in the paint.
And several times during the game, Nets who committed offensive miscues made up for the errors on defense. Early on, Michael Beasley drove across the lane on Yi Jianlian for an easy lay-in; a few possessions later, Beasley tried the same move, and Yi stuck with him, rejecting the shot.
In the third quarter, Devin Harris sent a pass into the hands of Rafer Alston, but streaked back on defense in time to take a charge as Michael Beasley barreled down the lane. Minutes later, Terrence Williams fouled Daequan Cook shooting a three (he sank them all) before stealing a pass and going end-to-end for a lefty layup.
And in the fourth, Kris Humphries took a well-contested fadeaway, but was able to recover and block Dorell Wright's layup on the other end, leading to the Williams-to-Brook Lopez alley-oop that gave the Nets their final lead.
"We're focused on making the right plays," Harris said. "The biggest things is when you make a turnover, you want to get it back as quick as possible – not doubling your mistake, but trying to get it back on the defensive end. Guys are focused on that. When guys make mistakes, they're trying to make the right play to get it back, and defense is the right way."
Skip Says Hello
Point guard Rafer "Skip to my Lou" Alston was back in East Rutherford for the first time since reaching a buyout agreement and being waived on January 5th. The 11th-year veteran soon signed with the Heat, immediately taking over as the team's starting point guard. In 22 games with Miami, Alston has averaged 6.6 points and 3.1 assists in 27.2 minutes, with an assist-to-turnover ratio better than 3:1.
Playing against his former teammates on Wednesday, Alston dished out five assists against a single turnover, though he missed all five of his shot attempts. While the Heat escaped with a victory, Alston saw again what he had witnessed all season, from within the Nets locker room and without: potential.
"It's tough because you know deep down there are some talented guys in that locker room," Alston said, pregame. "Every time I walked into that locker room when I played here, I looked at the names and said, 'Wow. These are some talented guys.' Look at the names on the locker: you can walk in and see Harris, Lopez, CD-R, Lee, Yi and you're like, 'Wow. These guys have some players over here.' It's just a matter of guys coming together, meshing together and displaying it on the floor."
Boone's Back-to-Back
Coming off his first appearance in 10 games, a successful one in which Josh Boone racked up seven points and eight rebounds in only 16 minutes, the Nets' forward had a limited opportunity to compound the performance. Given 9 minutes, 14 seconds, Boone scored four points and grabbed a rebound, adding a steal and an assist to his stat line.
Boone's transition dunk midway through the fourth quarter gave the Nets their first lead since the second period, when Boone scored his other bucket, a layup off a no-look pass from Chris Douglas-Roberts.
"I'm doing my best," Boone said. "I'm just doing the normal things I do when I get out there: trying to rebound the ball and trying to play defense and finish around the rim."
Free-for-All, Fun for All
Also, with trade rumors running rampant as Thursday's 3 p.m. deadline approaches, Nets coach and GM Kiki Vandeweghe is following along with the rest of the rabid masses:
"I am a basketball fan and a junkie, so I love reading about all the trade rumors," Vandeweghe explained, pregame. "To me, that's fun. It's fun for the league and fun for the fans. You hear so many things flying around to get your imagination going.
"But at the end of the day, deals are hard to make. There are so many factors that are involved: there's the basketball side – the pure basketball side – there's the economic side, there's the whole future and present, there's 'How does it affect your cap?' And nobody wants to be wrong in a trade. So it's tough trading guys, but it's fun to read about it."
Yet there remains one aspect of all the hoopla that gives Vandeweghe pause:
"At times, the only thing that bothers me is you are talking about real people and these guys do get affected," he said. "Their play gets affected, their families … and that's always a tough part about this business."
