The Nets dropped a winnable game to the injury-riddled Memphis Grizzlies on Monday, with the final score at 106-102.
Fighting for the final spot in the play-in tournament and facing a Grizzlies team sporting a five-game, post-all-star break losing streak, the Nets were bogged down with terrible free throw shooting and looked like they had an aversion to rebounding the ball.
Center Nic Claxton led Nets scorers with 21 points on 8-10 shooting, the rare efficient shooting performance from the Nets first unit last night.
Nets forward Mikal Bridges scored 14 points on 4-14 shooting, 2-8 on 3-pointers, and 4-9 from the free throw line. Cam Johnson, the other Nets starting forward, added 18 points on 6-15 shooting.
The previous match saw the Nets give the Grizzlies an old-school Brooklyn beatdown in Memphis 111-86. Yet last night at home, the Nets could not defeat a team with an injury-riddled roster filled in with 10-day and two-way contracts.
The Grizzlies scored just 106 points, but the low score wasn't about the Nets' defense because the Grizzlies missed many open looks at the basket.
Rebounds and foul shots were the deciding factors in the game, with the Grizzlies out-rebounding the Nets 50-33 and the Nets going 17-30 from the free-throw line.
Luke Kennard had the hot hand for the Grizzlies, scoring a game-high 25 points on 6-9 shooting from deep, and added seven assists, while Grizzlies forward Jake LaRavia's 14 point and 10 rebound double-double was invaluable for the win.
The game was nip and tuck from the opening tap, with the Grizzlies taking a 53-52 lead into halftime.
Kennard seemed open the entire second half, scoring 19 of his 25 points after intermission on 4-5 shooting from the 3-point line. The Grizzlies shot 22.2% from long distance, so the Nets simply did not guard the only visiting hot hand.
It was a low light reel of air balls and bricks by Memphis, yet the Nets could not take advantage. The Nets came into the game with a two-game winning streak by beating the Atlanta Hawks in both games of a home and home series. The Grizzlies game could have pushed the Nets streak to three to gain ground on the Hawks for the final spot in the play-in tournament, but Brooklyn could not pull through.
A win would have given them momentum for the back end of back-to-back home games when the Philadelphia 76ers come to town. The 76ers have limped to a 6-8 record since injured all-star center Joel Embid has been out of the lineup.
The Nets have played 75% of their games this season, the team now has a favorable schedule ahead. They have the 5th easiest remaining slate of games in the NBA, which means nothing if the Nets don't snag the low-hanging fruit and get the winnable games.
The Nets were without point guard Ben Simmons, who is back in street clothes with a nerve impingement in his lower back (left side). Dennis Shrodër picked up some of the slack with 13 points and 9 assists in the game.
The next game is on Tuesday for the second game of a home back-to-back against the Philadelphia 76ers.
