NEW YORK — The Brooklyn Nets (19-59) were riding a two-game losing streak prior to Sunday’s matchup against the Washington Wizards (17-61), one of the worst teams in the NBA. Brooklyn is trying to end this season on a strong note and while they are dealing with plenty of injuries, that isn’t stopping the available players from giving their best effort in every game.
The Nets beat the Wizards 121-115 despite Washington coming back from a 17-point deficit to make the game interesting in the second half. Rookie guard Nolan Traore had one of his best games of the season with 23 points and seven assists while forward Jalen Wilson is once again taking advantage of the extra playing time in this one by dropping 19 points and five rebounds.
The Nets began this matchup about as well as head coach Jordi Fernandez could have expected as Brooklyn scored 35 points while shooting 63.2% from the field and 60.0% from three-point land. At the same time, the Nets held the Wizards to just 36.4% shooting from the floor and 14.3% from behind the three-point line to show how well they were playing on the defensive end of the floor as well.
However, the Wizards woke up in the second quarter as the won the period over the Nets 31-24 thanks to rookie forward Will Riley and his 11 points and two assists in the quarter. From the beginning of the second quarter to the end of the game, Washington shot a blistering 63.2% from the field while Brooklyn shot 44.9%, but players like Traore and Wilson were able to step up in the clutch when the game became close.
Ultimately, the Nets gave up 30 points and six assists to Riley while also allowing players like Jamir Watkins (20 points, eight rebounds) and Julian Reese (17 points, 16 rebounds) to make huge impacts on the tenor of the contest. Thankfully, Brooklyn was able to come away with the victory to elicit some happy feelings before Tuesday’s game against the Milwaukee Bucks.
This article originally appeared on Nets Wire: Nets end 2-game losing streak with 121-115 win over Wizards
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