Nets vs Hawks Recap: Not Taking Advantage

After the New York Knicks lost earlier to the Clippers, the Nets had an opportunity arise. They had a chance to tie the Knicks for first place in the Atlantic Division when they played the Atlanta Hawks for the fourth and final time this season. The Nets couldn't take advantage as they lost 105-93. They remain one game behind the Knicks for the

The story of the first half was turnovers for the Nets. They continue to struggle with keeping the ball in their possession. They turned the ball over 10 times in what was an ugly half. Joe Johnson finally began to play well against his former team and entered halftime with 13 points. Reggie Evans got things going immediately as he scored six of the Nets' first eight points of the game. He went into halftime with eight points and nine rebounds. Defense was almost non-existent in the second quarter where the Hawks would out-score the Nets 30-25 to take a 51-49 lead at halftime. The Nets had many missed opportunities when they got to the rim but missed the layups.

After the half, it looked like the Nets were going to play "typical Nets basketball." In fact, they did until the final two minutes of the quarter. Turnovers continued to pile up, but defense did improve. Led by Reggie Evans, the Nets out-scored Atlanta 24-20 in the third quarter. The fourth quarter rolled along and the Nets played like a team that didn't just have a four day break. Turnovers put the Nets in trouble and Atlanta got easy baskets thanks to the lack of ball security. Defense disappeared and the Hawks took advantage leaving the Nets back in the dust. When trying to win a game, you can't trade baskets the entire game. That's exactly what the Nets did and it left them with a loss. Atlanta out-scored the Nets 34-20 in the fourth quarter.

Deron Williams and Joe Johnson led the Nets in scoring with 18 a piece. Williams added eight assists and three steals. Reggie Evans put up 14 points while also adding 22 rebounds, giving him his NBA-leading fifth 20+ rebound game. Brook Lopez put up 17 points and grabbed six rebounds.

Final Score: 105-93 Hawks
Most Disappointing Stat of The Game: 16 turnovers for Nets
Most Promising Stat of The Game: 36 points from Deron and Joe
Scariest Moment of The Game: Deron Williams hitting his head at the end of the half.
Best Moment of The Game: Joe Johnson scoring 13 in the first half


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