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Long Island Nets fall to College Park Skyhawks, 95-94

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College Park Skyhawks v Long Island Nets
Photo by Evan Bernstein/Getty Images

With Dariq Whitehead already in concussion protocol, Long Island was without Drew Timme and Killian Hayes. The result was a heartbreaking loss to College Park.

Closer but another tough loss for the Long Island Nets, and now, like the big club, they’ve been hit with the injury bug.

Long Island returned to Nassau Coliseum for the third and final game of this homestand on Thursday night to face the College Park Skyhawks. The game would be another close battle down to the very end but the Nets fell again to the Hawks affiliate, 95-94.

The big story coming out of this game wasn’t the loss. It was the unavailability of Killian Hayes and Drew Timme, two of the Nets best players. Hayes and Timme were both on the bench dealing with injuries. For Timme, it was a right ankle sprain suffered in Tuesday’s game. Hayes has been dealing with left hip soreness. Hayes has been dealing with hip issues since his rookie year in Detroit. In fact, it kept him out of Brooklyn Nets training camp in October.

There was no update for how long Timme and/or Hayes may be out.

The injuries come at a time when Dariq Whitehead is missing some time and is in concussion protocol. He was present at the game to cheer his teammates on from the bench, indicating he won’t be traveling with Brooklyn for at least the beginning of their upcoming 11-game West Coast trip.

As for the players who did play tonight, some stepped up when it was desperately needed.

Tyson Etienne played arguably his best game of the season, so far. Etienne led the team in scoring picking up 27 points. He had the hot hand from beyond the arc tonight, connecting on six of his 10 shots. Etienne also picked up five rebounds, two assists, and a steal, adding to his already impressive stat sheet.

Trevon Scott and Kendall Brown tied for second on the team in points with 14. As for Scott, he finished with another double-double, picking up 10 rebounds. He added to his impressive day with two assists, two steals, and even picked up one block.

Since coming to Long Island, Scott has been showing exactly why Long Island decided to trade for him. Albeit, a slow start, Scott has been on a tear recently. This came after his double-double on Tuesday night where he scored 18 points and picked up 10 rebounds.

Kevin Obanor, another of Long Island’s latest acquisitions, scored only eight points but grabbed 20 boards, six of them offensive.

From the very beginning, the two teams battled back and forth.

The game was tied six times in the first. Long Island hit 45% of their shots in the quarter including one of their four 3-point attempts. By the time halftime came around, Long Island had a four-point lead.

Despite the Nets shooting 40.9% from the field and 42.9 from behind the arc, College Park outscored Long Island 24-23 in the third quarter. The Nets maintained their lead and went into the final quarter ahead by three, 71-68. The Skyhawks worked hard to turn the tides in the final period, outscoring the Nets 27-23 in the quarter.

Final score: College Park Skyhawks 95, Long Island Nets, 94.

Atlanta two-way forward Keaton Wallace tallied 26 points, eight rebounds, three assists, three steals and one block in 32 minutes. College Park forward Kevon Harris recorded 25 points, four rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block in 29 minutes.

Terry Roberts Feels Amazing

After the game, ND got to speak with Terry Roberts who is making his return to the NBA G-League since being wounded at a Philadelphia nightclub shooting a year ago. Roberts was a bystander who was wounded so badly he had to be put on a ventilator in a Philly hospital.

“I feel amazing,” Roberts told ND. “I feel great to be back, playing for Long Island, my hometown.

“I’m taking it one game at a time,” Roberts said when asked about his mindset. “Continuing to get back to the same T-Rob I was last year. My teammates and coaching staff have helped me with that, so just being the same me is my mindset coming back.”

As for the remainder of the season, Roberts said his main goal for the rest of the season is just getting back to being himself. “I have a great support system around me, great teammates, and a great coaching staff. So, just getting back to being me is my biggest thing right now.”

Roberts finished Thursday with 11 points, seven assists and three assists, his best performance in his return.

Next Up

The Long Island Nets (2-3) look to get back in the win column on Sunday, January 12, as they travel to Indiana to take on the Indiana Mad Ants. The game tips off at 6:00 p.m. ET and can be viewed on the NBA G-League, and Long Island Nets, respective websites.