Brooklyn Nets Break 10-Game Home Losing Steak With A Win Over The Knicks

One win might not mean anything in the grand scheme of things, but the Brooklyn Nets enjoyed themselves on Wednesday night. Days after their coach and general manager lost their jobs, the Nets outplayed their crosstown rivals, the New York Knicks, earning a 110-104 win in front of a sold out crowd at the Barclays Center.

Even if a large portion of the crowd was Knicks fans, the Nets still relished the atmosphere. “The environment was so much fun out there,” Brook Lopez said after the team’s first win at home in the past 11 games. “It was just live and if we could get something like that each and every night and we earn that respect and we get people coming to the game, it’s something great to feed off of.”

Lopez himself scored 20 points as he out-dueled his brother Robin and Thaddeus Young added 19 points and 11 rebounds in the win.

“Games like this, it’s going to help turn our fan base around,” interim head coach Tony Brown said. “If we continue to play in this kind of fashion, we’ll fill the seats — but we’ve got to show them first. It’ll take time, but tonight was a good start.”

The Knicks kept the game close, despite playing without leading scorer Carmelo Anthony. Derrick Williams picked up the slack, scoring a career-high 31 points. Kristaps Porzingas struggled, however, only hitting five shots from the floor; he finished with 12 points.

“On nights like this when we don’t have (Anthony), I can’t have a shooting night like this,” Porzingis said. “I’ve got to step up. I’ve got to score the ball more.”

 

Photo: Brook Lopez #11 of the Brooklyn Nets passes under pressure from Pau Gasol #16 of the Chicago Bulls at the United Center on December 21, 2015 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)