BROOKLYN – The Brooklyn Nets must lead the NBA in buzz kill.
Seemingly out of playoff contention just a week ago, the Nets surged back into the playoff picture with a thrilling triple-overtime win over the Milwaukee Bucks at Barclays Center on Friday night and a gut check win the next night in Indiana over the Pacers.
The Nets went into Monday night’s game against the Boston Celtics just a game out of the final playoff spot.
The Nets had momentum. The Nets had one of the league’s hottest players in Brook Lopez. The Nets had a chance to put the momentum train into overdrive and their fans were ready to floor it.
But instead of keeping the pedal down, the Nets suffered a disheartening letdown, dropping a 110-91 decision to the Celtics while allowing Boston to shoot 51 percent from the field.
Nets fans brought optimism and energy to the basketball cathedral on the corner of Atlantic and Flatbush Avenues. They left disappointed, having seen their team lose for the 20th time in 32 home games.
The Nets (29-40), the only team in the league with more wins on the road (17) than at home (12), have another opportunity to gain ground in the playoff race with a game at Charlotte on Wednesday night.
The Hornets (30-38), who held the eighth playoff spot, played in Chicago on Monday night. The Pacers (30-40) lost to the Rockets. The Heat (32-37) and Bucks (34-36) were idle.
The Celtics (31-39) got a triple-double from Evan Turner (19 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds) to offset Brook Lopez’s 31-point performance. Deron Williams (10 points, 10 assists, nine rebounds) just missed a triple-double for Brooklyn.
KEY PLAY: The Nets, trailing by 14 in the third quarter, had closed to within 89-80 with 9:45 left in the fourth. But Kelly Olynyk beat Mason Plumlee on a pick-and-roll for a dunk.
KEY STRETCH: Olynyk’s dunk started a 7-0 spurt by the Celtics that pushed the Nets' deficit to 96-80 with 8:18 left in the fourth. Olynyk scored all seven points on a dunk, a three-pointer and short jumper. He finished with 18 points. He scored just four in the Celtics' loss to the Pistons in Boston’s last game.
KEY STAT: The Nets were 26 of 30 from the free-throw line. Fantastic. They were 1 of 17 on 3s. Awful.
NETS GAINS: Hard to find one outside of Lopez. He had two blocked shots to go along with his 31 points. He has blocked at least one shot in every game in March.
TALK: “I’m disappointed we haven’t won more at home,’’ Nets Coach Lionel Hollins said. “I think we have 10 more home games. We’ll see what we can do.’’