Bobcats 96 – Nets 105

Nets took their first lead of the game with a Deron Williams layup in transition, up 4-2 early on.  10 of first 12 Nets points came in the paint.  Off Williams’s dish, Brook Lopez knocked down a bucket to tie the game 8-8. Lopez is knocking down the open J early for Nets, now has 5 points.  Bobcats 4 offensive rebounds have cost the Nets in first but a 10-0 run for the Nets keep them up 21-17.  Nets rebound late in the first quarter to take a 29-23 lead into the second. Nets Shot 56.3 percent and D-Will had 8 points and 2 rebounds.

Nets start the second as always with the Bench Mob with C.J. Watson, MarShon Brooks, Keith Bogans, Mirza Teletovic and Andray Blatche.  Blatche made his first two drives for dunks and hits 10 straight Nets points.  The Nets are dominating inside right now. They’ve got 28 pts in the paint vs 13 pts for Bobcats, led by Blatche with 2 dunks, 2 layups and 2 FTs.  With a quick 6-0 run, Bobcats cut the Nets lead to 1 pt, 41-40, middle second.  Ben Gordon and Jannero Pargo have combined have 16 points on 5-of-6 shooting in second.  Gordon hits another three to frustrate Brooklyn.. He’s energizing the Bobcats with 3 treys, 14 pts and 2 boards in second.  Bobcats lead Nets 51-47 less than two to play.  Nets trail 54-53 at the halftime on a huge giveaway layup by Reggie Evans to Gerald Henderson. Nets 1-for-8 from 3-point range. Lopez with 13, Blatche and D-Will each have 12.  Henderson had 13 points at half.

Second half began with Evans losing a tooth by someone’s head.  He never left the game.  D-Will looks energized with three straight buckets for Brooklyn.  With a 12-2 run in 3:10, Nets take a 67-60 lead against Bobcats, middle three.  Nets hit 5 of first 6 FGs.  Joe Johnson with 8 of his 15 points in the third.  With another FT, Henderson has 18 points. He’s been getting to the line all day for Bobcats, hitting 6-8 FTs.  Nets match their biggest lead of the game with a  Williams three. Nets up 8 points, 77-69 late third.  At the end of three the Nets are up 83-75. D-Will has 24 points and 5 assists to lead Brooklyn.

[blockquote]P.J. on D-Will – It’s a tribute to how hard he has worked on and off the floor but it was expected.  One of the few intelligent things I’ve said was, the one thing I was not worried about was Deron Williams.  We got a lot of other thinks to worry about.  Deron is one of, if not the best, point guards in this league.[/blockquote]

Nets went with bench lineup to start fourth with Johnson anchoring it. This did not work Thursday.  Nets take their biggest lead of the game with an Blatche jumper. Nets up 9 points 87-78 early fourth and either team can get the ball in the hoop, combining for just 11 points, last 5 minutes. Nets are in control.  With a quick 6-0 run, Bobcats cut the Nets lead to 3 pointts, 91-88, with 4:56 left.  Bobcats right back in this one.  Ben Gordon hits another critical three to cut the Nets lead within 1 point 95-94 with 2:44 left.  Evans has 18 rebounds right now.  Williams hits a critical jumper that rolled all over the rim to put Nets back up by 3 points, 97-94 with 1:19 left.   Williams hits a free throw to put Nets back up by 6 points, 102-96 with 32 sec left. This one might be over. Nets win 105-96 in Brooklyn.

LEADERS:

Points – Williams – 32

Rebounds – Evans – 20

Assists – Williams – 6

STAT OF THE NIGHT: Deron Williams takes over second place on the Nets single-season three-pointers list, passing Vince Carter. He also took over sixth place all-time for the Nets in three-pointers with 287 made.

GAMECHANGER: Ben Gordon came in off the bench and showed Brooklyn and Billy King what they were missing out in for not trading for him.  Gordon had 14 points at half and almost dragged the Bobcats to a win in the fourth with three 3-pointers and 13 points in the final quarter.  He ended with 27 points in 28 minutes on 8-16 shooting.

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