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Brooklyn Nets unable to complete comeback, losing in rematch to Indiana Pacers 108-103

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NBA: Brooklyn Nets at Indiana Pacers
Robert Goddin-Imagn Images

They made the Pacers sweat, but nothing beyond that.

No two NBA games are the same, even if they include the same teams, in the same spot, and are less than 48 hours removed from each other. Unless you have a thing for turnovers, ejections, and a whole neighborhood’s worth of bricks, that was for the better tonight.

Unlike the absolute rock fight that ensued between the Indiana Pacers and Brooklyn Nets on Thursday night, our rematch today was a symphony of swishes and jams with an upbeat melody. Both teams shot north of 40% from the field. Trendon Watford even saved his banter for after the buzzer!

Still, it wasn’t a song Brooklyn fans will want to listen to again in the near or distant future. Despite it being a prettier basketball game overall, it was one that largely favored the Pacers in the end.

Indiana came into it stretched and with their shoe laces double-knotted. With Tyrese Haliburton in the lineup this time, they were running early and often, generating seven transition points in the opening frame.

Brooklyn, on the contrary, stumbled out of the gate. With it now being their turn to play without a point guard, as D’Angelo Russell sat this one with ankle soreness, it took the Nets over three minutes to find their first points of the game. They started 0-6 from three and shot 7-21 from the field in the first. Made shots were at a premium, and the ones they did bury in felt more like answered prayers rather than earned rewards.

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Wilson also had to have been glad to get a different kind of game tonight. After putting up a goose egg despite logging 19 minutes on Thursday, the swingman put up 13 points while shooting 5-of-12 from the field and 3-of-9 from deep. He, Keon Johnson, and Trendon Watford all led Brooklyn in the scoring department at halftime.

With five of those first period makes being of the 3-point variety for Brooklyn, they were able to keep us out of early blowout territory, as the Nets only trailed after one 28-25. But in the second, more of the same continued. The Pacers kept running and gunning, snatching another seven transition points.

Even on the plays not meeting the technical “transition” requirements, Indiana still moved up and down the court with pace and precision. Much like Brooklyn used to with Ben Simmons, they’d inbound the ball and push with tempo, aiming to catch the defense off-guard even after Nets’ points or dead balls.

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The disarray exhibited by Brooklyn’s offense and Indiana’s willingness were also coefficient factors in a nightmarish cycle for the Nets, as energy-absorbing offensive possessions left them with tired legs when it was time to turn around and defend. Huffing and puffing, Brooklyn trotted into halftime down 61-52.

Once play resumed, Myles Turner turned what was already a solid night for him into a real dandy, scoring from everywhere to put in 10 points in the third period. When it was all said and done, the trade deadline’s greatest cockroach (I swear this is a compliment even if it doesn’t sound like it) finished with 22 points, eight rebounds, and three blocked shots.

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When he checked out around the five minute mark of the third, Brooklyn trailed by a 79-66 margin. At that point looking like the Thursday version of themselves, they had the shots during that stretch, but couldn’t take advantage, as Indiana closed the period on an 11-4 run, putting the Nets behind to start the fourth 90-70.

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Even with that being the largest deficit of the night, it wouldn’t be a Brooklyn Nets game without a push-back effort that makes you proud, yet anxious with your other eye on the draft lottery standings. Brooklyn saved theirs for the opening minutes of the fourth, where they enjoyed a 21-2 run. The Pacers continued to race up and down the floor, but found themselves stumbling at the finish line of each possession in the fourth. They began the frame 1-11 from the field and 0-6 from deep.

“I think the fight all the way through is important,” Jordi Fernández said postgame. “Never give up. You’re down 20, having the chance to fight for the game. It talks a lot about how these guys, the work that they put in everyday. Not quitting when you’re down 20, it’s extremely. important. We could have done things better, but I’m really proud of the way guys played.”

But the Pacers didn’t let it go any further than that. Being the seasoned vet that he is, Pascal Siakam knew Indiana needed to 1.) finally start slowing things down and 2.) actually score some damn points. He did both, looking inside and getting to the line where he added eight points in the final four minutes.

That miniature, manufactured burst from Siakam plus a missed bunny from Nic Claxton put the Pacers up six under a minute to go. That gave them enough space to tread water until the final buzzer, even with Trendon Watford doing his best to drown everyone at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Wat finished one tick off from his career high, contributing 26 points after shooting 9-14 from the field.

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“I just had a feeling cause I didn’t see anybody open, so I had a feeling he was going to throw it off my back,” he said postgame. “I was able to like time it, tip it a little bit. I don’t know how that shot went in.”

“I feel like we would have won that game if I didn’t get ejected,” Watford went on. “So I just wanted to be there for my team today and just lock in…we came up short today but I just wanted to be out there and be as impactful as I can.”

Indiana stayed shooting better from the field than the Nets, but Brooklyn came back to post a slightly better clip from three. Second chance points were only off by a bucket, with the Nets losing by two. Off the bench, where the Nets normally dominate, they only won by a deuce. The largest difference on the night from a statistical standpoint still came on the break, where the Pacers put up 21 points to Brooklyn’s eight.

You could argue Brooklyn should have been ready to run this race with the Pacers. Indiana’s speed at the offensive end has been well-documented for over a season now. They also rank top-10 in pace and transition points per game this year.

But when you’re also a team on the brink of reaching 50 losses for the season, odds are you’re not conditioned to stick with a playoff-bound squad step for step.

Final: Indiana Pacers 108, Brooklyn Nets 103

Milestone Watch

  • Trendon Watford’s 26 points are the most he’s had in his Nets career. They’re also the second-most points scored by a Net in a game off the bench this season (Tyrese Martin – 30 points – 11/27 at Phoenix).
  • Noah Clowney drew Brooklyn’s 36th charge of the season tonight. That’s the fifth-most in the league and four times as many charges as the Nets drew all of last season (nine).

Next Up

NBA: Dallas Mavericks at Brooklyn Nets
John Jones-Imagn Images

Next on the agenda is a team that’s been the punchline for just about every joke in the association post-February, and rightfully so. The Nets will host the Dallas Mavericks back at the Barclays Center on Monday evening, meeting them for the first time this season.

The last time these two teams played, Dallas not only had Luka Doncic, but Brooklyn had Spencer Dinwiddie starting at point guard and Royce O’Neal coming off the bench. So yeah, it’s been a minute.