Raptors Continue to Own Nets in 2014

sportsspyder.com

By Nick Ziegler (@Ziggy26x)

January 27th, 2013

Toronto Raptors vs. Brooklyn Nets Post Game Recap

Final Score: Raptors 104 Nets 103

For the second time in 2014 the Toronto Raptors beat the Brooklyn Nets on the second half of a back to back for Brooklyn. The loss is only the second of the New Year for Brooklyn, as it moves them to (20-23) on the season, which is 2.5 games behind the Raptors in the Atlantic Division. 

Positives:

Paul Pierce one game after a tough emotional return to Boston, where he didn’t play very well bounced back with his best game of the season on Monday night. Pierce in just 31 minutes scored a game-high and season-high 33 points on 10 for 16 shooting, which included him going seven for 10 from three-point range, also a season-high for three-pointers made. Besides a great scoring game, Pierce also did a good job helping out on the boards, as he grabbed six rebounds.



The main beneficiary to the move to keep Deron Williams coming off the bench continues to be Andray Blatche, who since London has been playing great. Blatche played 21 minutes off the bench, and scored at a great rate, as he had 20 points on eight for 11 from the field to go along with six rebounds. In five of his past six games, Blatche has scored 17 or more points.

Deron Williams has seemed to embraced his role on the Nets off the bench, as he isn’t looking to score as much as he use to, and instead is making it a priority to set up teammates. Williams scored just nine points on four for 11 shooting, but had 11 assists and was +18 on the court. Williams did however have a bad turnover towards the end of the game on a pass intended for Joe Johnson that was stolen by Patrick Paterson.

Negatives:

Joe Johnson has officially cooled off for the Nets, as after a hot start to the month; Johnson has really struggled in the last three games for Brooklyn. On Monday night, Johnson scored only 12 points on three for 10 shooting. In the past three games Johnson is shooting just six for 22, with two games of scoring less than 10 points. 

The best player for Toronto on Monday night was Kyle Lowry, who the Nets had no answer for all night. Lowry had a complete game, scoring 31 points on 10 for 18 shooting to go along with seven rebounds, five assists, and five steals. He also had quite the shot to end the half, as time expired; he hit a shot from a little beyond half court to finish up his 20-point first half. Raptors Center Jonas Valanciunas also had a very nice game, as the big man made work of the Nets small lineups. Valanciunas finished with 20 points on nine for 14 shooting to go along with a game-high 13 rebounds for a nice double-double for the young Center.

A big disappoint for the Nets in the loss on Monday was the lack of defense, which has been so good in 2014,  as they allowed the Raptors to score 104 points without DeMar DeRozan. In 12 games in January the Nets have only allowed over 100 points three times now, which is very good, but against the Raptors without their best scorer at home is something shouldn’t happen in a big game. 

Next up for the Nets will be a nice break before they host Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday in the last game of January for the Nets.