Nets Heat up in second half thanks to aggresssive play
MIAMI — Nets coach Jacque Vaughn always planned to use Wednesday’s preseason finale as a dress rehearsal. And for the first time, his struggling defense looked fit for prime time.
Brooklyn earned its first victory against NBA competition in its last game of the preseason, a 107-104 result over Miami before a sellout crowd of 19,600 at Kaseya Center.
Though wins and losses don’t matter yet, progress in picking up defensive concepts does. Up to this point the Nets had looked shockingly ahead of schedule on the offensive end of the court, but far, far behind on the end that is ultimately going to have to carry them this season.
The Nets had nine blocks and held Miami to 42.3 percent shooting, 11 of 32 from behind the arc.
And they got stronger as the game went on. Brooklyn allowed 34 points in the first quarter to fall behind by 16, but held Miami to just 18 in the third.
After forcing just three turnovers in the first half, the Nets forced 13 in the second, holding Miami to just 5 of 18 shooting from deep to rally for the win.
“Yeah, that’s a big part of the second half is kind of how we want to play,” Vaughn said. “I think you saw we were much more aggressive, and you could see that and just the activity level — whether it was deflections in the second half.
“I think overall, we have the ability to play with a [edge] and be physical as a team and aggressive, but smart also at the same time. And I thought we did that in the second half and a big part of that was deflections and activity.”
Granted, the Nets faced a Heat team that was without Jimmy Butler, Tyler Herro, Caleb Martin, Kevin Love and Kyle Lowry. But they were in the right place, finally moving between drop, switching, zone, and not looking confused.
Their only victory had been to second-division Israeli team Maccabi Ra’anana. Following defeats to the Lakers and 76ers, the Nets seemed set to lose this one before backups Lonnie Walker IV (game-high 22 points) and Day’Ron Sharpe (19 points, 11 rebounds, three blocks) carried them.
“Just penetration,” Walker shrugged. “I know that they’re very shift team as far as not letting the ball get to the middle of the paint. So just being ready for catch-and-shoot, getting downhill, doing what I do, just playing the right way, knowing the game, all my teammates just kind of stacking each game.”
As has been their wont this preseason, Brooklyn stumbled out of the gate.
The Nets dug themselves into a 14-3 hole on Hayward Highsmith’s 3-pointer. They missed eight of their first nine shots, committed four quick turnovers and trailed by 11 just 5:33 into the game.
The deficit swelled to 27-11 on Dru Smith’s pull-up 3-pointer with 3:10 left in the first quarter.
The Nets were just 3 of 16 before Royce O’Neale hit back-to-back 3-pointers to give them some life.
Still trailing 45-34 with 8:41 left in the half, the Nets ripped off a 16-3 run.
Dorian Finney-Smith knotted it at 48-all with a 3-pointer, and Ben Simmons threw a go-ahead alley-oop to Sharpe.
The third quarter was a seesaw affair, until Cam Thomas lured Cole Swider into a foul and converted a goahead four-point play with 4.6 seconds left. It gave Brooklyn a 79-77 lead going into the fourth.
With the score knotted at 84, Walker and Mikal Bridges sandwiched 3-pointers around a Justin Champagnie turnover. It handed the Nets a six-point edge with 9:21 to play.
The final three minutes were backand-forth. With Brooklyn down 100-99, Sharpe hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:49 left. And after Miami’s Orlando Robinson turned the ball over, Walker added another 3 to pad the lead to five.
The Nets led by three when Sharpe was whistled for a foul with six seconds left, his right hand deemed to have made contact with Nikola Jovic’s right hand on a 3-point attempt. It would’ve given the Heat center a chance to go to the line to potentially tie the game, but Vaughn challenged the call and got it overturned to essentially seal the win.