BROOKLYN – The Nets battled all the way back from being 17 points down, but it wasn’t enough to avoid being swept by the Spurs this season in a loss at Barclays Center.
Brooklyn will take some solace in the fact that they showed a new level of focus on the first quarter, scoring 26 on 50 percent shooting. This time it was a slow start in the third quarter that did the team in. However, the Nets could take pride in a strong fourth quarter as it fought back from a 79-64 hole to cut the score to 91-88 at one point.
LaMarcus Aldridge paced the visitors with 34 points, 8 rebounds on 54.2 percent shooting, while Patty Mills chipped in with 25 points on 7-for-10 shooting from off the bench. Allen Crabbe led the way for the Nets with 20 points and a career-high-tying eight rebounds. It was his sixth 20-point game this season, matching his career-high which he accomplished last season.
The Nets’ losing streak against the Spurs extends to six-games with their slide at home now at five. Brooklyn looks to rebound in its finale of a three-game stretch at Barclays Center when its hosts Miami on Friday.
Nets Fail to Contain Aldridge
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Tyler Zeller, Jahlil Okafor, Jarrett Allen – none of those players could slow down the Spurs’ All-Star.
Midway through the fourth quarter, Aldridge scored on three-straight possessions – the Nets couldn’t stop him. Zeller had some success in slowing him down later in the stretch, but the Nets center admitted it was likely due to fatigue.
“I had the bonus of him being tired when I got in, I tried to not allow him to get an easy layups and push him out as far as possible.” Zeller told BrooklynNets.com.
He mentioned earlier, “What makes him great is when you think you’ve played perfect defense, he’ll turnaround and hit that jumper and it hurts.”
Making things even more difficult was the play of Pau Gasol. Similar to the last time these two team met on Dec. 26, Gasol had timely buckets that were back-breaking for the Brooklyn. The veteran Spaniard finished the game with 13 points (on 5-for-8 on FG), 12 rebounds and seven assists.
Dinwiddie Acknowledges Needing to Shoot Better
It was a tough shooting night for the Nets point guard.
In the first three quarters, Dinwiddie shot just 1-for-7 before finishing the game with 3-for-13 with nine points. The fourth-year guard’s playmaking remains elite as he dropped a career-high 13 dimes with zero turnovers, but his consistency with shooting lately has been an issue. Despite being on a three-game slump, Dinwiddie refused to blame anything but himself for his recent struggles.
“For the past three games, I’ve been broke [on shooting],” he said. “For us to be a good team, I can’t play in that fashion. I have to make more shots. Is it something that people are doing? Not really.”
He added, “I mean quite frankly, it’s not like I really feel like anybody can stop me, I just got to make shots. I have to be better for our teams to get wins.”
Joe Harris Has Another Strong Night
Harris is quietly having a solid campaign in his second season with the Nets as he’s averaging career-highs in points (10.0), rebounds (3.2) and shooting percentage (.468). Although he’d probably wish he could have that three that he missed with 1:14 remaining, overall he had an excellent shooting night – scoring 18 points on 54 percent shooting, including hitting four threes.
Atkinson praised Harris for his impact on the game and noted how far he’s come in developing an all-around game.
“He’s really becoming a complete player,” Atkinson said. “I felt like last year, we would get him out for defense, you know we have to get somebody else out there, if it was a defensive matchup or something.
“Now there’s no fear, putting him on anybody, putting him on wings…He’s just an all-around improved player. He’s not just known as a shooter now, he’s kind of developed in the whole game, it’s great to see.”