The Brooklyn Nets defeated the San Antonio Spurs 101-85. The Nets achieved their first victory over the Spurs since the 2013-14 season. The Nets came out and completely dominated this game. The Spurs were playing their last game on their 8 game road trip that began before the all star break, and it showed. The Spurs got zero production from any of their players besides LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar DeRozan. Brooklyn came out of the gates hot, outscoring San Antonio 28-20 in the first quarter. More of the same continued in the second, as the Nets outscored the Spurs 24-18 to take a 14 point lead into halftime. Caris LeVert scored 12 straight points to end the second quarter, and had his best game since his return. D’Angelo Russell and Caris LeVert both had very good games, but they need to learn how to be effective on the court at the same time. When they share the court LeVert looked out of sync on offense. They will figure it out with time, but for now it’s still a process. The Nets continued their dominant play in the third quarter, outscoring the Spurs 29-21. D’Angelo Russell hit back to back deep threes in the quarter to solidify Brooklyn’s win. San Antonio would come back in the fourth (outscoring Brooklyn 26-20) but it was not enough. The Spurs cut the Nets lead to 14 with about 4 minutes to go, but it was too little too late. The Nets will now play a stretch of 7 games against teams below .500. A 6-1 stretch would be very nice before a brutal road trip.

The Nets were once again led by all star D’Angelo Russell. Russell finished with 23 points 8 assists and 7 rebounds on 5-11 shooting from deep. Russell has proved that he is an elite point guard in the league with his recent play. Caris LeVert had his best game since returning from injury, finishing with 15 points and 7 assists. LeVert looked dominant in the second quarter, and his three point shot looked like its shaping into form (2-5 from deep). LeVert will be huge for this team down the stretch. Lastly, Joe Harris had a stellar shooting performance finishing with 15 points on 5-6 shooting from deep. Harris moved past Spur David Bertans for the #1 three point shooter in the league. Harris is now one of the elite three point shooters in the league.

The Spurs were led by the tandem of LaMarcus Aldridge and DeMar DeRozan. Aldridge was dominant, finishing with 26 points and 10 rebounds on 12-21 shooting. Aldridge took advantage of the strength advantage he has over Jarrett Allen, and did not disappoint. DeRozan had a normal DeRozan game, finishing with 23 points and 5 rebounds on 9-13 shooting. DeRozan was very tough from the mid range game, but did not attempt a three point shot. The Spurs could not shoot threes tonight, and it hurt them when they were down big. It’s very hard to beat a team like the Nets if you do not attempt a lot of threes. The Spurs will look to bounce back from a 1-7 road trip back at home, as they look to stay in the Western Conference playoff picture.

What’s Next?

Brooklyn remains home to face the Wizards on Wednesday, while the Spurs take on the Pistons at home on Wednesday.

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