Nets Show Grit, Top Grizzlies After Stellar Fourth Quarter

The Brooklyn Nets came out on top against the Memphis Grizzlies in the sixth game of their West Coast road trip, 122-109.

Sean Kilpatrick led the Brooklyn Nets with 23 points and five rebounds. Jeremy Lin added 18 points and four rebounds. Mike Conley had a game-high 32 points and dished out six assists for the Memphis Grizzlies. Marc Gasol contributed 18 points, six rebounds, and four assists.

After missing two threes to begin the game, the Nets went on a 10-0 run to take an early 10-3 lead. Brooklyn’s young guns, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Caris LeVert, showed aggressiveness early on, scoring the 12 of the team’s first 15 points. The Nets’ lead would not last for long, as one three-pointer apiece from Chandler Parsons and JaMychal Green brought the Grizzlies back within one, 15-14.

A rim-racking reverse jam by Brook Lopez helped the Nets regain some momentum. Both teams were red-hot from behind the arc, with the second half of the first quarter appearing like a three-point shootout. With under five minutes to go in the first, the teams exchanged a pair of three-pointers, as the contest still remained close despite Memphis’ eight turnovers in the period.

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The Grizzlies shot a perfect 7-of-7 from long range in the quarter, while the Nets shot a solid 7-of-12. Brooklyn was able to capitalize on 13 points off the Grizzlies’ turnovers and held a 36-34 advantage after one quarter.

Things slowed down for the Nets to start the second, with the Grizzlies going on an 11-0 run to take a 43-36 lead. Brooklyn responded with a 7-1 run to bring the game back within one, thanks to a three by Isaiah Whitehead and successful playmaking by Spencer Dinwiddie.

A few minutes later, with Lin back in the game, the point guard converted on a trey and fed the ball up the court to Kilpatrick, who completed the play in transition. A layup from LeVert on the following possession capped off a 7-0 Nets run as Brooklyn finally took the lead, 56-55. Still, the Nets trailed 57-56 at halftime.

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Brooklyn came out of the locker room looking lifeless, allowing Memphis to go on a 9-0 run and take a 64-56 lead. However, the Nets quickly had an answer by canning three shots from behind the arc to pull their deficit to just two points, 70-68. Memphis would start pulling away yet again, as an astonishing four-point play by Conley gave the Grizzlies their largest lead of the game, 87-75, with 3:09 remaining.

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Still, the Nets battled back to close out the quarter. Led by Kilpatrick and Trevor Booker, Brooklyn went on a 13-2 run to make it a one-point game with just 6.4 seconds remaining. The Nets were only down by three points, 91-88, after three quarters.

Three field goals by Whitehead at the beginning of the fourth helped the Nets take their first lead since the first quarter, 96-95, with 8:19 remaining. The Nets further extended their lead after two pairs of free throws by Lin put them up by seven, 111-104, capping an 8-0 Brooklyn run.

Lin continued to show dominance on the floor in crunchtime, consecutively knocking down a fadeaway jumper and triple from way downtown to bring the Nets’ lead to double digits. His 11 points in the final quarter and stellar play down the stretch helped the Nets close out their eleventh victory of the season, 122-109.

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Brooklyn now has two wins on their eight-game “circus” road trip. They’ll travel further south to Atlanta to take on the Hawks on Wednesday.