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Brooklyn Nets Highlights: Nets Pick Up Impressive Win Over Portland Trail Blazers

By Kenneth Teape

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Brooklyn Nets Highlights: Nets Move 1 Game Ahead Of Boston Celtics With Win Over Portland Trail Blazers

The Brooklyn Nets picked up an impressive victory over the Portland Trail Blazers last night to bounce back from the trouncing that the Atlanta Hawks gave them Saturday night. With the victory, the Nets are now a full game clear of the Boston Celtics in the seventh seed, and two games ahead of the ninth place Indiana Pacers and Miami Heat. Tonight was an important win, as the Nets have four more games against teams coming up against teams in playoff contention.

The Nets took control of the game tonight with an outstanding second quarter that saw them outscore the Blazers 32-13. They were able to get a stranglehold on the game, and kind of cruised the remainder of the game. That was actually the only quarter that the Nets beat the Blazers in, as the Nets were actually outscored by nine points, three points in each of the other three quarters.

It is beginning to become something of a broken record, but once again Brook Lopez was dominant in the middle. Tonight he had a little extra motivation, going up against his twin brother Robin. Brook was able to get the most of Robin in this one, as he continued his scoring barrage, pouring in another 32 points on 15-25 from the field. He also added nine rebounds, one assist block and steal for yet another strong night from the Nets center. Imagine where this team would be had the Oklahoma City Thunder accepted their trade centered around Lopez and Reggie Jackson.

Lopez wasn’t alone, as Deron Williams is finally putting together some games as the point guard the Nets thought they were getting from the Utah Jazz. Against the Blazers Williams controlled the perimeter, scoring 24 points to go with 10 assists and six rebounds. He also didn’t turn the ball over once, which is always a positive especially when you play 37 minutes.

The Nets needed everything positive that Williams provided Monday night, because Blazers point guard Damian Lillard was on top of his game as well. Lillard torched the Nets and the nets with a game-high 36 points, knocking down six three-pointers in the process and 14-26 overall. He also added four rebounds and two assists, but unlike Williams, Lillard had a negative plus/minus ratio at -9 compared to the +6 Williams produced.

Lillard received some help from his running mates in the starting backcourt, as Arron Afflalo and C.J. McCollum each reached double figures as well. The trio helped propel the Blazers to a strong night from deep, as they made 11-26, resulting in 42.3 percent.

The Blazers also got some help on the inside from Meyers Leonard. Leonard, who has only played 20+ minutes once since the All-Star break, found his way into 37 against the Nets and made the most of them. The uber athletic big man was a force in the middle for the Blazers, as he ended up with a double-double, scoring 17 points to go with 15 rebounds. He also added four assists and two steals.

The Nets didn’t have much of an answer for him, but thankfully the Blazers didn’t have much in the way to stop Lopez or his partner in crime up front on Thaddeus Young. Young has been on a tear recently and continued his strong play Monday night. He scored 20 points of his own to go with five rebounds, two assists, one steal and one block. Lopez and Young have combined to become quite the duo up front, giving teams something to worry about in the middle and allowing Williams to work the perimeter.

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Joe Johnson struggled though, scoring only six points on 1-10 shooting from the field. He was picked up by Bojan Bogdanovic off the bench, as he scored 15 points and registered a +20 plus/minus ratio on the night. That makes consecutive double-digit scoring efforts for Bogdanovic, who looked to be playing his way out of the rotation just over a week ago.

Next up for the Nets will be another matchup against the Hawks. They will be looking to exact some revenge after the drubbing they took over the weekend. Luckily for the Nets, the Hawks will be playing tonight, so they may sit some of their regulars in their matchup Wednesday. That would greatly benefit the Nets, as they need as many wins as they can get.

Next: Are the Nets closer to a title than the Knicks?

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