The Brooklyn Nets pulled this one out by the skins of their teeth at the end. Up big at halftime, the Nets lost their star Jeremy Lin to a hamstring injury for the second half. After scoring 71 points in the first half, Brooklyn only put up 38 in the second half without Lin. Luckily, the Pistons could not pull off the comeback and the Nets come away victors 109-101.
Jeremy Lin left the game at halftime and sat out the rest of the game with a strained hamstring. Lin was playing very well before he went down. Lin had 10 points on 4/6 shooting as well as four assists. Needless to say, Isaiah Whitehead did a mediocre job at best in replacing Lin.
Brook Lopez was dominant while Lin was on the floor giving us a great look at what Brook-Lin could become as the season progresses. Even when Lin went out Brook had himself a game. Coming into the game, Lopez had four career three-point shots made. In the first half alone Lopez tied that hitting 4/5 in the half, 4/8 overall in the game.
Lopez finished with 34 points and 11 rebounds, giving him his first double-double of the season. He did it against Andre Drummond, too. Sean Kilpatrick kept up his high scoring as he put up 24 points on 8/13 shooting and a perfect 4/4 from long range.
Brooklyn shot a fantastic 53.9% from the field tonight and did not attempt over 30 three-point shots on the night for the first time all season. This was a significantly better performance from the Nets than we saw Monday night.
Keep an eye on the Jeremy Lin situation, though. Hamstrings could be tricky and it is clear this team needs Lin healthy in order to compete. 38 points in the second half is unacceptable; this game should not have gotten close. With Lin out, it was not too surprising.
Grading the Players:
There are three players I need to give A grades to. Brook Lopez obviously gets it with his 34 point and 11 rebound performance. Those three-pointers he made were legendary, too. Jeremy Lin was playing very well slashing through the lane with ease all night long. If he stayed in the whole game, he would have had incredible numbers. Lastly, Sean Kilpatrick. Shooting 8/13 and 4/4 from range off of the bench is worthy of an A grade. Don’t speak now but Kilpatrick looks like an early Sixth Man of the Year candidate.
I will give C’s to a couple of players. Joe Harris, Justin Hamilton, and Bojan Bogdanovic all get C’s. Neither played very well, but each of them played well enough for me to not get too angry with them. Bojan missed some shots he should have made and Joe Harris takes too many three’s. Justin Hamilton just does not go down low and get rebounds at all it seems.
Players who get F’s are much more plentiful than they should be in a win. Trevor Booker, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Isaiah Whitehead, and Luis Scola all get F’s. Trevor Booker had an extremely clutch block, but that was about it. He scored only four points and grabbed four rebounds and had three steals. Those numbers need to at least double for me to be happy with him. Isaiah Whitehead had five points and five turnovers, not efficient by any means. Rondae was held scoreless and he cannot seem to find his shot anywhere he looks. Luis Scola has been unnoticeable all season long. He scored only two points on the night.
Brooklyn now sits at a respectable 2-3 and they stay at home to take on the Charlotte Hornets on Friday night. The Pistons get a few days off as they travel back to Detroit where they have a bout scheduled with the Denver Nuggets on Saturday. Keep on eye on Jeremy Lin’s injury status to see if he will be available Friday, or anytime soon for that matter.
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