Nets vs Cavs Recap: Taking Care of Business

Coming in with a record of 3 wins and 2 losses, the Nets face a Cleveland Cavaliers team that does not have the same level of talent. Kyrie Irving will be a star but his  defense is terrible and they don't have enough size to match up with Brook Lopez. This was a problem all night, but Brook establishing position was a good sign for the Nets.

The first quarter was full of offense. Brook Lopez established his dominance early and was too strong on the offensive end, scoring at will against the Cavaliers. On the flip side, Anderson Varejao gave the Nets big men a full workout. Scoring 17 points and snatching 7 rebounds and all of this was just in the middle of the first quarter. Both teams fought but played little defense, allowing nearly 60 percent in field goal shooting. Kyrie Irving showed his "Uncle Drew" like moves early with fancy dribble and behind the back passing. His moves are crafty and he was able to get into the paint every time they called for a pick-n-roll. But Lopez was able to use his length which disturbed most shots. He even finished with 4 block shots. The first quarter was a typical Nets quarter coming out slow but  they finished it down  by two.

By the second quarter, the Nets bench came in and provided a much needed spark. Andray Blatche and Reggie evens were the two responsible. Reggie Evans came in and provide that relentless energy, similar to what Varejao had in the first quarter. That was also a positive for the Nets because he was the only player that gave the nets problems. Joe Johnson started off slow but the defense still felt his presence. His passing and setting up players provided hockey assists and multiple points in the paint. The Nets outscored the Cavaliers 35 to 12 by the second quarter and ended up scoring 42 in the paint. Blatche lead the bench with 9 points and Deron Williams added with 15 and 5, giving the Nets a 64 to 42 at the half.

The second half was interesting because curiosity would set in. The Nets would be leading by at least 20 but somehow collapse and let a team come within striking distance. Lopez would continue abusing the Cavaliers in the paint but Varejeo would not quit. The Cavaliers went on 9-0  run lead by Kyrie Irving going into the fourth. Kyrie had 14 points while  Varajeo  man-handled  the Nets with 17 rebounds at that point.

 Kyrie and the Cavaliers made the game interesting but the Nets are stacked with too many scorers. Joe Johnson came alive and started hitting rhythm  shots. Zero three-pointers were made for the Nets until Joe started. He was set up beautifully by Deron and the offense started flowing. C.J. Watson, made a three along with Deron and the lead blew up from there. Turnovers and defensive stops basically ended the game and resulted in a win for the Nets. They had 23 fast break points and finished with 60 points in the paint. This is the Nets third straight win,something that has been a rare sight and I would like this streak to continue against the Boston Celtics Thursday night. It's about that time for  the Nets to prove  to world that they bang with the "Elite" teams.

Final Result: 114-101 Nets
Disappointing Stat of the game: Anderson Varejao finished with a career high in 35 points and 18 rebounds.
Promising Stat of the game: The Big three scored 74 points. (Deron,Brook,Joe)
Scary Moment of the game : Cavs went on a 9-0 run to end the third quarter.
Best Moment of the game: Deron Williams alley-opp to Lopez for the and-one.

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