The Brooklyn Nets put on a consistent offensive performance in the first quarter yet struggled to lock down Reggie Jackson and the Detroit Pistons who pulled away in the second half for the victory.
- Brooklyn Nets 96 (25-52)
- Detroit Pistons 108 (37-40)
- NBA, Final, Box Score
- Barclays Center, Brooklyn, New York
The Brooklyn Nets and the Detroit Pistons met on Sunday night for the last time this season in Barclays Center. Reggie Jackson and the Pistons pulled away in the second half, taking this one 108-96, despite tempers flaring and ejections present at the end of the third quarter.
Before tip-off, The Nets held a moment of silence for Zeke Upshaw, the Pistons product who passed away last week.
Early in the first quarter. Nets’ Jarrett Allen slammed home Brooklyn’s first field goal:
L?K OUT BELOW pic.twitter.com/gaVuQTLTqe
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) April 1, 2018
In the middle of the first quarter, the Nets showed a quick video tribute to Jason Kidd on the Barclays Center big screen. Kidd was inducted into The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame this past Friday.
At the end of the first quarter, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson led the offense with eight points on 4-5 shooting. Brooklyn was consistent from field goal range shooting 57 percent, but was cold from three, shooting just 1-8. The Nets trailed the road squad 33-28 after one.
During the second quarter, Pistons guard Ish Smith tore up Brooklyn with his offensive speed. Brooklyn could not find a solution to stop Smith which led to Detroit pulling away and increasing their lead. Smith scored 17 points on a perfect 7-7 shooting from the field.
At the half, the Nets trailed the Pistons 62-48. Hollis-Jefferson led the Nets in scoring with 10 points and four rebounds at the end of the first half.
.@IAmCHAP24 leads the Nets in scoring ? pic.twitter.com/5hR3KNuvZD
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) April 1, 2018
Early in the third, Hollis-Jefferson woke the “quiet” Barclays crowd with a thunderous slam:
Rondae elevates for the slam ? pic.twitter.com/1lC4MXxdH9
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) April 1, 2018
Late in the third quarter, tempers flared between Pistons big man Andre Drummond and Nets’ Quincy Acy.
Acy and Drummond got into a physical altercation over a loose ball leading punches and ejections. During the altercation, Acy clipped an official with a forearm while charging at Drummond. The scuffle was broken up by Nets and Pistons players and refs and concluded with Acy and Drummond ejected.
Drummond headed to the locker room with his jersey ripped in half. Acy, on the other hand, walked to the locker room upset with both hands over his face.
At the end of the third quarter, Detroit led the Nets 83-70.
Time to finish strong pic.twitter.com/k1BU1R1bIQ
— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) April 1, 2018
Early in the fourth, the Nets attacked down low due to Drummond’s absence. Despite the attack down low, the Nets kept misfiring from the field. Detroit capitalized off the missed shots and was too strong on the other end.
With 2:38 left in the game, D’Angelo Russell kept the Nets alive. Russell fired a crowd-erupting three which decreased Detroit’s lead to six points.
Despite the Nets inching closer late, Detroit escaped with the road win to extend their win streak to five games and help their playoff push. With the loss, Brooklyn fails to achieve their first three-game win streak this season.
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— Brooklyn Nets (@BrooklynNets) April 2, 2018
The Brooklyn Nets look to battle back on Tuesday, April 3 in a divisional match up against the Philadelphia 76ers.
