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 Another defeat seemed possible but then forward Joe Johnson
delivered a vintage performance down the stretch.
Johnson scored 15 of his 22 points during the fourth quarter and
Brooklyn held on for a 110-105 victory over the Houston Rockets on
Tuesday night.
"It felt great," Johnson said. "I thought throughout the game we
played pretty good basketball. We got off to a great start which is
good for us because we're pretty much a young team and confidence is
key for us. We got off to a great start and we just had to maintain.
We knew there were going to make a run. We executed offensively and
got stops."
Johnson matched his season-high in points while shooting 9-of-15
from the floor in 43 minutes. He also added five rebounds and eight
of Brooklyn's season-best 27 assists on a night when it held a
16-point lead midway through the third.
"He was vintage, take me back to 2007," forward Thaddeus Young said.
"That was when I first entered the league. He just took them back
today. He did a really good job of facilitating and making baskets
for us."
Johnson's big quarter countered the spark provided by former Net
Marcus Thornton. The reserve forward scored Houston's first 17
points in the fourth and led the Rockets with a season-high 32 on a
night while guard Corey Brewer added 22 after forward Trevor Ariza
exited with a back injury early in the game's opening minutes.
Thornton produced the most points off the bench in the NBA this
year. The outburst came on a night when star guard James Harden was
held to 10 on 2-of-9 shooting and committed seven of Houston's
season-high 24 turnovers.
"Poor decision-making, especially on my end," Harden said.
Center Brook Lopez led the Nets with 24 points while blocking five
shots. Young added 20 and 12 for his 10th double-double and ninth in
his last 12 games but there was little doubt who helped Brooklyn
improve the Eastern Conference's second-worst record to 6-15.
"That's what Joe does," Lopez said. "We know we can go to him a ton
in crunch time and he's going to deliver."
Delivering included five straight points after the Rockets were
within 84-82 early in the fourth. It also included when Johnson
glided past Harden and executed a spinning floater with 2:59
remaining, giving the Nets a 101-94 lead after Harden hit a
3-pointer on the previous possession.
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Johnson's impressive looking hoop did not quite finish matters. The
Rockets were within 103-99 before Harden found center Dwight Howard
for a cutting layup and appeared poised to get even closer when
Lopez was called for an offensive foul with 2:03 remaining.
Houston could not capitalize as Thornton missed a 3-point attempt
near the Nets next bench. Brooklyn scored on its next two
possessions as guard Bojan Bogadanovic converted a layup with 1:29
left and Johnson drove past Brewer for a basket and foul shot 28
seconds later.
"Joe Johnson was outstanding in the fourth quarter and down the
stretch, he carried us home," Brooklyn coach Lionel Hollins said.
The outcome was still in doubt and Houston crept closer when
Thornton stole the ball from Johnson. Harden drove to the hoop but
after getting fouled by guard Markel Brown he spilt a pair at the
line with 35.7 seconds left.
On the next possession, Bogdanovic missed a corner 3-pointer as the
shot clock expired but Lopez grabbed the rebound and guard Jarrett
Jack knocked down two free throws with eight seconds left. The game
ended when Harden misfired badly on a 3-pointer with 1.9 seconds
left.
"We should have come in with better effort," Howard said. "We didn't
and paid the price for it."
NOTES: The Nets did not release an official timetable for G Rondae
Hollis-Jefferson's return from right ankle surgery. However, when
mentioning how hard it would be for the rookie to catch up upon
returning, coach Lionel Hollins hinted Hollis-Jefferson would be
back in 10 weeks. ... Hollis-Jefferson will have his surgery
performed by Dr. Martin O'Malley at the Hospital for Special Surgery
in Manhattan. O'Malley did the foot operations on Brooklyn C Brook
Lopez and Oklahoma City F Kevin Durant. ... Houston C Dwight Howard
turned 30 Tuesday and played on his birthday for the fifth time in
his career. ... Houston F Trevor Ariza exited with a bruised back on
a drive to the hoop early in the first quarter.
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