Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen, left, and Brooklyn Nets forward Dorian Finney-Smith battle for the ball during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, April 2, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/John Munson) (John Munson, AP)
Good things happen when the Nets take an opponent’s best scorer out of the game.
It’s been the constant for a Nets team that extended its winning streak to three games with a 111-110 victory over the Utah Jazz on Sunday afternoon.
The new-look Nets have won games in large part due to their defensive principles and ability to force talented scorers into poor shooting nights.
It’s when they can’t get a handle on those stars, however, that the losses begin to pile.
That has not been the case in recent games: The Nets held Trae Young to just 3-of-12 shooting from the field in Friday’s victory over the Atlanta Hawks. They limited Rockets guard Jalen Green to a 9-of-21 shooting night in the win against Houston, and in the must-win victory over the Miami Heat on March 25, the Nets held Jimmy Butler to just 6-of-13 shooting from the field and only seven trips to the foul line.
And to make it three in a row on Sunday, the Nets had to neutralize Jazz All-Star Lauri Markkanen. In their efforts to do so, however, they lost track of Talen Horton-Tucker.
Markkanen, the first-ever NBA All-Star born in a Nordic country, averages just a hair under 26 points and nine rebounds with three made threes a night. In his first game back in the Utah rotation after sitting two with a hand injury, Markkanen scored 23 points on 8-of-21 shooting from the field. The Nets double-teamed the Jazz star in the high post and forced him into tough, contested shots all night. He shot just 4-of-11 in the first half before finding his stride in the second half.
It’s the opponent’s second scoring option, however, who the Nets are forcing to win a game. Against the Hawks, Dejounte Murray scored a team-high 21 points. For Houston, Kevin Porter Jr. and Alperen Sengun carried larger scoring loads. And for the Heat, Tyler Herro, Bam Adebayo and Max Strus all stepped up while Butler struggled to find offense.
And while Markkanen struggled from the field on Sunday, Horton-Tucker hung 30 points on 12-of-25 shooting, almost exclusively attacking his man off the dribble and finishing through contact at the rim. Utah’s Ochai Agbaji also hit a pair of threes. Rebounding machine Walker Kessler missed most of the second half with a head injury, and vaunted scorer Jordan Clarkson sat out with an injury to his ring finger.
The Nets, though, nearly found a way to blow the game in the fourth quarter. Vaughn pulled his starters at the top of the final period, and Utah’s reserves responded with a scoring run that cut Brooklyn’s once 23-point lead to just 13. Vaughn subbed his starters back in midway through the fourth, but the momentum remained in Utah’s favor.
The Jazz outscored the Nets, 42-26, in the fourth quarter. And when Seth Curry missed both free throws up one to give the Jazz a chance at winning at the buzzer, it looked like Brooklyn was going to let another winnable game slip through the fingertips.
Luckily for Brooklyn, Jazz big man Kelly Olynyk had tunnel vision and attempted to go coast-to-coast for the win. His floater floated over the rim at the buzzer.
“Honestly, man, we got lucky,” Spencer Dinwiddie said walking off the floor. “I ain’t gon lie to you. We’ve got to do better.”
Mikal Bridges scored 30 points, Cam Johnson added 18 and Spencer Dinwiddie continued his streak of double doubles with 17 points and 12 assists.
The Nets have four games remaining on the schedule. Next up, they host Karl-Anthony Towns, Anthony Edwards, Rudy Gobert and the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday.
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Originally published at Tribune News Service