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 Is there a main reason for their recent success?
"We're playing together," said center Brook Lopez, who scored 24
points and grabbed 11rebounds, leading the Nets to a 111-106 victory
over the Indiana Pacers in a critical contest with playoff
ramifications for both teams Tuesday night at the Barclays Center.
"That's the biggest thing. We're all looking for each other."
"The team is playing really well," said guard Alan Anderson, who
added 20 points off the bench. "We're playing together. We're
sharing the ball, looking for each other. It helps all of us out a
lot."
Six Nets reached double figures in an outing that saw the Nets
(33-40) secure their fourth straight victory, their longest of the
season, and their fifth in the last six games as they moved one-half
game past idle Boston into eighth place for the final playoff spot
in the NBA Eastern Conference with nine games to play.
The Pacers, who have been in a nosedive in recent weeks, lost for
the eighth time in the last 10 games and fell to 32-42, 1 1/2 games
behind the Nets in the standings. The Nets also now have the
tiebreaker against Indiana, winning two of three games this season.
Nets coach Lionel Hollins knows that his team is playing well,
improving to 8-2 over their last 10.
"We're more together," Hollins said. "We care more about each other.
I think we've been playing well since the All-Star break, but we
have to keep winning. It's one thing to play well. I like for us to
be playing well. But I like winning as well."
Forward Joe Johnson was huge, adding 21, including a clutch
3-pointer in the closing seconds to seal the deal.
Other than Lopez, Johnson and Anderson, 13 from guard Jarrett Jack,
11 points and eight assists from guard Deron Williams and 10 points
from guard Markel Brown.
"It was huge," Williams said. "The game meant a lot to both of us.
It was a great team win with a lot of guys playing well."
The Nets took control of the seesaw game midway through the fourth
quarter, going on a critical 5-0 run to push their lead to 95-85
with 7:05 left. Jack scored on a conventional 3-point play and
forward Thaddeus Young had a driving layup, giving Brooklyn the
commanding lead.
The Pacers sliced the lead to five on two occasions, but the Nets
held the Pacers at bay the remainder of the way to secure the clutch
victory. Johnson canned a long 3-pointer with 15.4 seconds left to
give the Nets a 108-100 lead.
The Pacers were led by guard George Hill, who had 28 points. Forward
David West had 14 points and reserves Luis Scola and C.J. Watson had
13 points each for the Pacers, who played most of the game without
C.J. Miles, who injured his ankle in the first half and didn't
return.
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"We just have to move on," Pacers coach Frank Vogel said. "The
game's over. There's still playing of basketball still to be played.
We have to move on right away. There's no choice. We have to move
past this game and get ready for the game tomorrow. It's just that
simple."
The Nets exploded out to a big 18-point lead in the first quarter,
then saw the Pacers' second unit come right back in the second
quarter, only to have the Nets take control of the game late.
"We just played more freely and got after it at home," Hollins said.
"We executed well down the stretch. It's not just one guy playing
well. It's the Brooklyn Nets playing well."
NOTES: Nets C Brook Lopez, who averaged 28.8 points and 8.5 rebounds
per game in four contests last week, was selected the Eastern
Conference Player of the Week. ... Pacers F Paul George is still
rehabbing his broken leg and not ready to return to action,
according to coach Frank Vogel. More than likely, George will not
play for the remainder of the season. ... The Nets welcomed back F
Thaddeus Young, who missed two games with a left knee strain. Young
has been a godsend since the Nets acquired him in the trade with
Minnesota for F Kevin Garnett. He began the night averaging 13.6
points per game for Brooklyn. ... Nets PG Deron Williams reached
6,000 assists in his career. ... Before getting hurt last night,
Pacers F C.J. Miles had averaged 26.3 points over the previous three
games.
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