The shorthanded Nets hit the street and performed three sturdy quarters of basketball in Denver on Friday, however Nikola Jokić and the Nuggets unleashed an offensive avalanche within the third quarter that in the end led to a 124-105 loss.
Ben Simmons returned from a four-game absence in opposition to the Nuggets, and within the recreation’s opening minutes, he set the tone for Brooklyn when it comes to tempo and vitality at each ends of the court docket.
The 6-10 guard began 3-for-3 from the sphere in his first 5 minutes with three assists and two steals. The Nets began 5-for-5 from the sphere as a staff, with every starter connecting on their first try. That offensive rhythm was sustained all through the primary quarter, as they scored 36 factors on 65% capturing, knocked down 5 3-pointers and bought eight factors, 4 rebounds and two steals from Simmons — good for a four-point lead coming into the second quarter.
One of many largest points for the Nets early — and all through the night time — was containing Jokić, who had 14 factors on 6-for-8 capturing in his first 10 minutes on the court docket. They by no means figured him out. Brooklyn’s capturing cooled down to simply 26.9% within the second quarter whereas Denver went 9-for-17 from contained in the arc. Jokić had 20 factors by halftime and the Nuggets had a 65-59 benefit.
Brooklyn seemed to be outmatched within the third quarter, because the Nuggets opened the interval on a 22-9 run to open up an 87-68. Nonetheless, the Nets did reply with an 11-4 run to finish the third quarter to trim their deficit to fifteen factors. They didn’t exit with no struggle.
Two-way ahead Tosan Evbuomwan drained back-to-back threes early within the fourth quarter to chop Denver’s result in 9, then minutes later, two-way guard Reece Beekman hit from deep to make it a five-point recreation with 8:01 left.
The Nets have been on a 24-7 prolonged run at that time. Every bucket got here from their bench, they usually did it with Simmons and Nic Claxton on the sideline. However out of a timeout, the Nuggets answered with back-to-back buckets to push their lead as much as 9. The Nuggets pulled away from there.
The Nets, losers of 4 straight, dropped to 13-25 with the loss.
All 5 Brooklyn starters completed in double figures, led by Keon Johnson, who scored 22 factors. Evbuomwan and Tyrese Martin added 10 and 19 factors off the bench, respectively. Simmons completed with 10 factors, 4 rebounds and 7 assists after his sturdy begin.
The Nets tallied a season-best 27 fastbreak factors within the loss, outscoring Denver 27-23 within the class. Noah Clowney went 7-for-7 on the free throw line, marking a profession excessive totally free throws made in a recreation.
Jokić led Denver with 35 factors, 12 rebounds and 15 assists. Russell Westbrook registered a triple-double of his personal with 25 factors, 11 rebounds and 10 assists.
Brooklyn will return to motion on Sunday in opposition to the Utah Jazz at Delta Middle, its second matchup in a six-game West Coast swing.
Initially Revealed: January 10, 2025 at 11:46 PM EST
