Starters ruin Nets’ night
Backups can’t save B’klyn from pounding
INDIANAPOLIS — When searching for a description of his starters’ energy and fight in Thursday’s 121-109 loss to the Pacers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Nets coach Kenny Atkinson offered up a fitting four-letter word. Mush. That’s how soft the starters’ resistance was, how easily they gave way to Paul George (26 points) and Jeff Teague (21 points, 15 assists, seven rebounds), digging one more hole than the bench could pull them out of.
“The starters took us out early, and there was a big difference,’’ Atkinson said. “We came out like mush for some reason. This [Pacers] team’s too good to come with so-so energy. It’s not good enough, especially on the road.”
The Nets’ starters fell behind by 13 points in the first quarter, before the bench — led by Justin Hamilton (team-high 16 points) and Sean Kilpatrick (benched after 19 straight starts) — helped rally to take a 38-36 lead midway through the second quarter. And that lead lasted all of eight seconds.
Brooklyn fell behind by 22 in the third, and the reserves got within 111-103 with 5:11 left on a 3-pointer by Hamilton (16 points). They got no closer. “Our first unit just didn’t have great energy. They outplayed us completely, and that’s the bottom line,’’ said Brook Lopez, who shot 5-of-14 and got outplayed by Myles Turner.
“We have to realize we’re playing for each other. We have to hold ourselves and each other accountable. We don’t want to let our team down so we have to go out there, play with a chip on our shoulder, play with energy, be aggressive and just keep battling. ... We have to believe we have a chance every night.”
It’s easy to see how belief could be in short supply, the Nets having lost four straight, 14 in a row on the road and fallen to an NBAworst 8-26.
And Thursday, the starters were the culprits. Every one of them finished minus-13 or worse, while no- body on the bench was on the wrong side of that ledger. Meanwhile every Pacer starter was at least plus-28.
Brooklyn fell behind by 13, and needed a 24-11 run to pull even on Lopez’s free throw with 7:53 left in the half. They even took a 48-46 lead on a 3 by Trevor Booker (16 points), and it was tied at 40 when George hit a step-back jumper and a dunk to make it 44-40. Teague’s layup stretched the lead to six.
It was still 59-52 at the half, but when Turner (25 points, 15 boards and five blocks) opened the third quarter with a 3 and Teague a layup to push the advantage to a dozen points, the Nets’ third quarter woes resurfaced and they fell behind 88-66.
The bench dragged them within eight, but no closer.
Hollis-Jefferson (hip) didn’t travel, but an unworried Atkinson said, “I don’t think it’s [bad]. Its shortterm, so we’ll see [Friday] when we get back we’ll see.”