Long Island Nets win behind Theo Pinson triple-double

The Long Island Nets led by as much as 17 points and hung on Friday for a 126-120 NBA G League victory over the Wisconsin Herd at Menominee Nation Arena.

One might say the Long Island Nets got a two-way victory Friday night, beating the Wisconsin Herd 126-120 in NBA G League action at Menominee Nation Arena in Oshkosh, Wis.

A pair of players on two-way contracts with the parent Brooklyn Nets did much of the heavy lifting, as Theo Pinson posted his first career G League triple-double with 27 points, 10 rebounds and 13 assists and Alan Williams had his second 20/20 game of the season with 28 points — matching a season-high — and 21 boards.

The Nets (13-6) led by as much as 17 points in the second quarter before the Herd (3-16) chipped away, getting the margin to just six points by halftime at 62-56.

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Turnovers turned the tide in the period, as Long Island gave the ball away 10 times, leading to 12 Wisconsin points.

The Herd took their lone lead of the second half when Donte DiVincenzo scored five straight points on a 3-pointer and a drive and layup to put Wisconsin up 74-73 with 6:24 left in the third quarter.

Shannon Scott buried a 3-pointer 17 seconds later and Long Island never trailed again.

The Nets led 117-104 with 2:35 left before the Herd made it interesting, putting together a 12-3 run to get to within four with 40.9 seconds left.

They would get no closer, however. Scott hit a layup out of a set play following a timeout and the Nets then hit four of six free throws in the final 22.6 seconds to hang on for the win.

The Nets played without point guard Jordan McLaughlin, who did not accompany the team after straining his left hamstring.

Long Island shot well, hitting 51.1 percent (47-for-92) overall and making 12-of-30 (40 percent) from 3-point range. The Nets outrebounded Wisconsin 60-41 and had a 66-58 edge in points in the paint.

However, Long Island’s 25 turnovers led to 29 points for the Herd. Wisconsin only turned it over 11 times, leading to nine points for the Nets.

Wisconsin shot 42.6 percent (46-for-108) and made 13-of-39 (33.3 percent) from deep.

Mitch Creek added 24 points for the Nets, while Scott finished with 16 points and seven assists. Tahjere McCall scored 12 points and Pinson added two blocks to his triple-double performance.

Travis Trice led Wisconsin with 24 points and six assists. Jaylen Morris, on a two-way deal with the parent Milwaukee Bucks, added 20 points and four steals.

Michael Qualls finished with 18 points, 10 rebounds and three steals, while DiVincenzo — on assignment from the Bucks — went for 18 points and three steals. Jordan Barnett also had three thefts and blocked two shots off the bench.

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The Nets make the long trek to Washington, D.C., to meet the Capital City Go-Go (8-8) at the Entertainment and Sports Arena Saturday for a 7 p.m. Eastern tip. The Go-Go dropped a 104-102 road decision Thursday to the Westchester Knicks.

Long Island Nets win behind Theo Pinson triple-double, Alan Williams 20/20

By Phil Watson | Dec 29, 2018

The Long Island Nets led by as much as 17 points and hung on Friday for a 126-120 NBA G League victory over the Wisconsin Herd at Menominee Nation Arena.

More from Nothin' But Nets