Summary
The Nets fell to 4-12 with a tough, hard-fought loss to the Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City Thunder with a 84-74 loss tonight at the Prudential Center. After the Thunder led by 10 points, 28-18, after the 1st quarter, they never looked back and were able to keep that 10-point lead for most of the game, keeping the Nets at arm's length. A positive sign for the Nets was that they didn't get blown which was able to be done because like the Nets, the Thunder just weren't shooting well and they couldn't break away and make the game a blow out.
High Performer- Kris Humphries
Humphries was his usual self against the Thunder and was able to control the boards but didn't shoot well in this game. On 6-17 shooting from the field, Hump scored 12 points and netted 16 rebounds, which included 6 of the offensive variety and 10 of the defensive variety. Kris also played well on defense with 3 blocks and helped to hold Perkins and Ibaka to shoot 4-12 from the field.
Low Performer- Anthony Morrow
A bunch of Nets could have been considered for low performer of the game but Morrow stands out amongst them. The Nets' resident sharpshooter was an awful 2-13 from the field in tonight's game and was only 1-4 from three-point range. Morrow has his good nights every now and then but this season, it feels as if he has had more bad nights than good. A possible reason for the shooting inefficiencies is that I noticed that Morrow doesn't seem to be getting his legs under his shots and it look like Anthony is quickly throwing up shot at the basket without getting himself in proper position. I don't know, that's just my opinion.
The Good
There weren't many positives from this game but a few that stood out were how many turnovers the Nets forced the Thunder to commit, how well the Nets shot from the free-throw line, and how well the Nets offensively rebounded. The Thunder committed a surprising 19 turnovers which is surprising coming from a disciplined team like they are but was also helped by the sometimes swarming Nets defense. Regarding the free-throw shooting and offensive rebounds, the Nets were 17-19 from the charity stripe (89.5%) and collected 16 rebounds on the offensive glass. These reasons helped the Nets keep the game from turning into a blowout.
The Bad
There were a lot of bad things to take from this game but I'll keep it to the two most important things: the Nets' awful shooting and turnovers. Shots just weren't falling for the Nets as they shot 31% from the field and 13% from three. Right now without Brook Lopez, the Nets just can't win games against good teams if they aren't making their shots, especially three-pointers. Regarding the turnovers, the Nets against committed 15+ turnovers as they seem to do every night which is a big reason as to why the Nets only scored a measly 74 points. These two things have to change if the Nets are to be competitive in the East before Brook returns from injury.
Looking Ahead
The Nets will try to rebound from the tough Thunder loss tomorrow night against the lowly Charlotte Bobcats at the Prudential Center. Tomorrow night's game is also the end of this current Nets home-stand as they will head out to Chicago after tomorrow's game (hopefully on a good note).
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