Joe Netsfan Game x Game 66 - Nets 117, Jazz 115

Settle in with a cocktail after that fine Nets win

Nets 117, Jazz 115
Game 66 File
A second straight strong game for the Nets ends with a Richard Jefferson drive through the lane, and his off-balance floater goes in with 1.5 secs. remaining to break a tie and win the game. A quick start with plenty o' fast breakin' is lost, then recovered in the third quarter as the Jazz and Nets battle down to the wire before RJ wins the day.
• Box Score

Nets Record: 28 - 38
Home Record: 17 - 17
Away Record: 11 - 21
Division Record: 2 - 8
Conf. Record: 20 - 18
Other Game Reviews

Nets High Men:
• Points: Richard Jefferson, 27.
• Assists: Devin Harris, 12.
• Rebounds: Josh Boone, 13.
• Steals: Carter and Swift each had 1.
• Turnovers: DHarris, Carter, Jefferson, S. Williams, M. Williams and Diop each had 2.
• Blocks: Josh Boone, 2.
• FG Percentage: Josh Boone, 88.9% (8 - 9 ).

Nets Team Stats:
• FG Percentage: 51.3%
• FT Percentage: 72.0%
• Rebounds: 48
• Rebound Differential: +19
• Turnovers: 15
• Opposing Team's Turnovers: 6
• Bench points: 21
• Bench points Differential:-9
• Steals: 2
• Blocks: 3
• Points in the Paint: 62
• Double-Doubles: 2 (Devin Harris: 19 points, 12 assists; Josh Boone: 21 points, 13 rebounds)
• Triple-Doubles: 0

The (No) Kidd Effect:
• Nets Players in Double Digit Scoring: 5
• Nets Fast Break Points: 31
•Devin Harris' FG Percentage: 50.0% (6 - 12)
• Scoring Differential Harris in the game: +10
• Scoring Differential Harris out: -8 (M. Williams)

Nets Media
Bergen Record | Nets
Newark Star-Ledger | Nets
Newsday | Nets
NY Daily News | NBA
NY Post | Nets
NY Times | Pro Basketball
YES Network | Nets

Nets Team Pages
CNNSI.com | Nets
ESPN.com | Nets
FoxSports | Nets
NBA.com | Nets
Sportsline.com | Nets

Jazz Media:
The Salt Lake Tribune | Jazz

Game 66: Nets 117, Jazz 115 – March 15 , 2008
I'll Drink To That
It was starting to look like the Nets were going to get boozed up thanks to Carlos Boozer's 41 points and his run of impossible jumpers in the fourth quarter of a tight NJ/Utah bar fight. But failing to succumb to the demon drink, the Nets scratched and fought their way to last call, when Richard Jefferson was able to put away the bottle with an off-balance floater in the lane with less than two seconds to play. A big win on a night when the Nets ran away with the Jazz car keys, got to the line as often as a drunken bar argument, and still found themselves looking for a hangover cure until their late salvation.

Bolting through the doors of the Izod to a quick, fast-break infused start, as Devin Harris pushed the tempo and his teammates were happy to oblige, putting the Nets up by 10 with only seven minutes gone. But after leaving with an eight point lead, Harris' replacement Marcus Williams entered with the start of the replace-Nets, an energy shift occurred, and the drinks starting flowing quickly for the Jazz. When Harris returned early in the second quarter, it was 36 - 34 Jazz, and they kept up the pace, ending the half up seven and with the Nets looking defensively silly at times.

But even drunks on a bender can keep their wits about them, and the Nets did a good job regrouping in the third quarter. Back on the attack, and to the free throw line, the Nets battled back behind Harris to tie the game at 65 and then take a brief lead at 68 - 65, before the Jazz, and Brewer, started drinking up a storm. The Jazz ended the quarter on a 21 -13 run to take a five point advantage into the fourth quarter.

And the drinking games began, as all late nights do. The Nets got a nice pour from Boki Nachbar, who popped in a layup and two threes to get the Nets a tie at 98 and more than six minutes still on the clock. It stayed tight the rest of the way, despite Boozer getting hammered, scoring 11 of the Jazz' last 14 points. His beauty of a layin and a foul underneath gave the Jazz a four point lead with only 2:49 to play, and things were looking beer-googles good for Utah.

But the Nets, who made a living at the line in the second half, got 6 free throws (4 by Jefferson) and a Carter layup all stuck around 3 misses by the Jazz, and it was a tie at 115 with only 12 seconds to play. The Nets took a timeout, ran an isolation for Jefferson, and then stepped aside to watch him get in the car, intoxicated with desire, drive right, veer left when meeting oncoming traffic, fall away and throw up a floater than bounced around the rim, and settled in with 1.5 seconds to play. A last-ditched heave from Mehmet Okur fell short (Carter fouled him on the head, with no call) and the Nets had themselves a late night, feel-good, hard-drinking win.

If anyone saw this coming last week, please, raise your hand and tell me which spirit you have been drinking, because I'd like some of that too. Now, with only 16 games remaining, let's see if the Nets can keep up the run, with Chicago and Atlanta trying to get the last playoff spot, just like the Nets.

Have A Drink On Me
Drink Of Life - That was some tough win for the Nets tonight. A quality opponent, a player on a roll in Carlos Boozer, the defense starting to wilt late, and still the Nets were able to get a few stops, close out the Jazz by making plays late, and bringing home a big win. They were using the foul line to their advantage (though they could easily have lost this one since they missed 14 free throws), they got into the paint at will (a whopping 62 points in there), they moved the ball around again and had balanced scoring (5 double digit performances), and they used the fast break to get out and abuse the tired Jazz (they had beaten the Celts the night before). Luckily, too, they played just enough defense to win (nothing to be proud about after giving up 115 points, but that could be the fabric of these new-look Nets). Great game, good win, now let's see what happens Tuesday night when they play a team equally as desperate in Chicago.
Heavy Drinking - Nice Kidd-like game tonight for Devin Harris, who used the fast break, his own speed, and his willing teammates to tear it up. Harris was 19 points, 12 assists and 8 rebounds (who does that sound like?), solid on the defensive end (Deron Williams, who had to be gassed after playing a ton of minutes the night before, had only 11 points and 16 assists), and he made decisions tonight that made the offense hum. He was, in fact, much better than his backup, Marcus Williams, and while that's a good thing, it's a bit troubling because they never seem to play well together in the same game.
Beer Curls - Strong game from Josh Boone, finally snapping out of the funk he'd been in over the last few weeks. And with Nenad Krstic unavailable because of the dreaded upper respiratory infection, he was absolutely critical in getting this win. Josh had 21 points and 13 boards, and often had the tough assignment of slowing down Carlos Boozer (that was a suicide job). Sean Williams also got into early (and I mean early) foul trouble and Stromile Swift appeared clueless in his short time on the floor, which put even more pressure on Boone to play well. The big negative was the foul shooting, where Boone missed 4 of 9 (which come to think of it, that was pretty good for him).
Broken Glass - Another big point in this win was the domination of the Nets on the glass, where they had a 48 - 29 advantage (with 20 offensive rebounds). Boone, Carter (8) and Harris (8) each did their part, turning the Jazz into 98-lb weaklings under there.
Favorites On The Counter - Nice games tonight from Richard Jefferson, who ran with the win and got the game winner; Vince Carter, who shot dismally again but turned that into a positive by getting to the line 14 times (did I hear the stat that the Nets are 8 - 1 when Carter gets to the line 10 times or more?); and Boki Nachbar, who again gave the Nets a lift just when the offense seemed to be dying out, hitting three big threes and making a bunch of hustle plays.
Short on Cash - How did the Nets win this game if the Jazz only turned the ball over 6 times all night? The Nets had only 2 steals and 3 blocks, so it certainly wasn't on the defensive end. Which makes the win by the formerly offensively-challenged Nets even more impressive.

Free-Flowing And On Tap
Just like all of those heavy drinking games, it's almost hard to understand how the Nets were so dismal and lacking in energy last week on the road, and how energetic and full of effort they have been in their last two impressive wins at home. Devin Harris, Richard Jefferson, Vince Carter, Josh Boone, and Boki Nachbar were all good to great, the fast break was working, the Nets were able to outgun a team that shoots 50% and scores 105 points per game, and they played just enough defense to get a win, so what's to complain about? Other than the fact that we don't always understand which team will be on the court for New Jersey, as they fight their way toward a playoff berth, does anyone really care which team it is? Of course we do, we want a team that gives consistent effort, doesn't back down to challenge, plays off its strengths, and gives every team they play a ball game, not a blowout. Let's see how many of the remaining 16 games are like that.
- Joe