Nets sweep West Coast travel, defeating Clippers, 112-108 as James Harden and Kyrie Irving combined for 65

NETS WORLD! NETS WORLD! Keep the party going, James! Keep the party going, Kyrie!

James Harden and Kyrie Irving scored 65 points and the Nets defeated the Clippers 112 to 108, sweeping their west coast journey, extending their winning streak to six games and improving to 20-12 in the season. Brooklyn is now half a game behind the Sixers for first place in the East.

The game featured four of the league’s most dynamic scorers, Harden, Irving, Paul George and Kawhi Leonard, as the game reached the final minute. The Nets were active most of the game, but then their character was tested.

With 28.6 remaining, Leonard hit a pair of free throws to tie the game at 108. In possession of the next ball, Irving lost an ISO-three, but DeAndre Jordan, who finished with his third double-double of the season with 13 points and 11 rebounds and four blocks turned the ball to put the Nets in 110-108 with 11.8 seconds remaining.

The Clippers gave the ball to Leonard, who drove down the track and pushed Harden to score an offensive foul. Harden, who finished with 37 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists in 41, calmly hit two free throws to seal the victory. Irving was not far behind on the box, with 28 points, eight assists and four rebounds in 40 minutes of play.

Bruce Brown played a big role for the Nets at both ends, ending with 13 points and eight rebounds, two assists and four steals, the best of the season, in 34 minutes.

Even without Kevin Durant for the fourth straight game, the Nets ended the victory with 47.8 percent of field shots and 28.9 percent of depth, by turning the ball six times. For the Clippers, who dropped to 22-10 in the season, George led with 34 points in 33 minutes, followed by Kawhi Leonard with 29 points in 39 minutes.

Both teams opened the game with an easy hit, but there were some initial mistakes. At the 8:54 mark. Harden dribbled the ball to the court and was received by Patrick Beverley, who held Harden with his right arm, initiating a small altercation. Despite the fight, the referees did not give technical notes to Beverley or Harden, who are also former teammates.

The altercation did not affect Harden or Irving, who led the Nets’ offensive attack during the first. combining 25 of Brooklyn’s 28 points in the first quarter – scoring the third time this season a pair of Nets ended a quarter of a game by scoring a dozen or more points. each Jeff Green scored the other three points for Brooklyn, with the Nets taking 30-28 after one.

Brooklyn took its offensive firepower to the second and the Nets increased their effort defensively, which made a difference. The Nets kept the Clippers with just 51 points in the first half, while forcing nine turns. Brooklyn ended the first half with a 58-51 lead, with 48.9% of total shots, but 35.3% in a row. Despite ending the first half on a strong note, the Nets lost Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot for the rest of the game, after the Nets’ 6’7 ”wing suffered a right hip injury at the 10:31 mark of the second.

The game got even more frightening in the third. The Nets’ defense remained strong as their offensive firepower ensued, which even included a double-bombed Irving dunk in the transition. After the slam, Ty Lue and the Clippers asked for time and recovered, achieving a smooth offensive run, but Brooklyn responded and controlled the pace.

In addition to the Nets stellar game at both ends, Brooklyn ended the period without a single comeback and only three for the game. The Nets entered the fourth period with a 10 point advantage.

Brooklyn did not give up in the last 12 minutes of the game, but the turnover increased. The Nets turned the ball three times in less than three minutes, while the Clippers, led by Paul George, recovered and reduced the deficit to one digit.

With just under three minutes left, Jeff Green was hit hard by an illegal Beverley canvas. Green lay on the court visibly in great pain, favoring his right shoulder. After staying on the court for almost two minutes, Green was able to walk to the locker room on his own, but it looked like he was favoring his right shoulder. In his post-game media availability, Steve Nash had no update on Green or TLC, but shortly thereafter, the team announced that Green suffered a bruise on his right shoulder.

Despite the Clippers’ late return, the Nets held on to win and sweep the trip. Yes, it can get even scarier!

The cinema hall

Steve Nash’s ACT design was wonderfully wonderful on this trip. According to my accounts, the Nets were 2 in 2 in the score and / or in the generation of free throws in the series after the time limit. Much of the work outside of Brooklyn last week was designed to generate perimeter photos. Here is an example from the Lakers game.

The play begins with Timothe-Luwawu Cabarrot setting up a rear screen (facing away from the basket) for Landry Shamet. The defense, of course, assumes that the move is prepared to give Shamet a shot in the rim. But then, the TLC redirects and wraps around a DeAndre Jordan flare screen for the three open.

Now take this ACT against the Clippers. Same idea; a player cuts to a specific part of the floor of a screen, but it is a wrong direction, as the set is REALLY designed for the player screening.

Joe Harris cuts from the baseline towards the top of the three-point line, passing through what appears to be a pindown DeAndre Jordan. Seeing that Jordan is setting up a screen for Harris, Clipper’s defense naturally assumes that the move was designed for Joey Buckets’ ball three, and Kawhi Leonard relaxes for a second while watching the action. DeAndre Jordan, whose rolling skills have been very spectacular lately, take advantage of this by sliding your screen into the basket. Colon, Brooklyn.

In games with playoff environments like this, all possessions are important.

Quick start!

It seems that every quarter, there is a data dump from the Nets PR team watching how the Nets team or a Nets player this season equaled or exceeded a record set in the Jason Kidd era. James Harden, for example, set a franchise record for consecutive games with a double-double at 12.

But here’s what counts …

That asterisk? Teams that made it to the NBA finals.

What is the next

The Nets are returning to the Barclays Center while the team hosts the Sacramento Kings on Tuesday, February 23. The game is scheduled for 7:30 pm Brasília time and will be broadcast on YES Network. Tuesday’s game will also be the first game that fans will be attending to watch the Nets Big Three!

For a different perspective, check out Clips Nation – our sister site covering the Los Angeles Clippers for SB Nation.