Nets
Nets Hold Off Wizards 131-119 Behind Bench Scoring Burst
Brooklyn beat Washington 131-119 in a preseason game at Capital One Arena, pulling away in the third quarter and controlling the paint the rest of the way. Both teams are 0-0 in the preseason, so the result carries no standings weight, but it showed Brooklyn's bench scoring depth and Washington's turnover problems.
By the Hoops Nightly Desk · updated 7 d ago01The story of the nightNets pull away after a tight first halfBrooklyn led 36-32 after one quarter, but Washington answered with a 40-37 second quarter to trail just 73-72 at the…
Brooklyn led 36-32 after one quarter, but Washington answered with a 40-37 second quarter to trail just 73-72 at the half. The Nets took over in the third, outscoring the Wizards 30-22 to go up 103-94, then closed it out 28-25 in the fourth for the 131-119 final. There were 16 lead changes for each team, and Brooklyn's biggest lead was only 12 points against Washington's 6, so this stayed close on the scoreboard even as the Nets controlled the final two quarters.
02Porter Jr. leads a balanced Brooklyn scoring nightMichael Porter Jr.
Michael Porter Jr. topped the Nets with 22 points on 8-of-13 shooting. Bench guard Nolan Traore added 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting, and Noah Clowney came off the bench for 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting with 4 assists. Keon Ellis scored 15 and Julius Randle ran the offense with 14 points and 9 assists. For Washington, Kyshawn George led all scorers with 21 points on 6-of-7 shooting, and Bilal Coulibaly added 19 off the bench on 7-of-11 shooting. AJ Dybantsa scored 14, and Trae Young had 11 points with 11 assists but also 8 turnovers.
03The paint and turnovers decided itBrooklyn outscored Washington in the paint 50-38, the single biggest gap in the box score.
Brooklyn outscored Washington in the paint 50-38, the single biggest gap in the box score. The Nets also shot better from the field, 46-of-81 (56.8%) to the Wizards' 39-of-77 (50.6%), and matched Washington's 17 three-pointers on more attempts. Washington turned it over 20 times to Brooklyn's 18, and the Nets scored 29 points off those turnovers compared to 26 for the Wizards. Both benches produced heavily: Brooklyn's reserves scored 72, Washington's scored 66, so neither team was hurt by its rotation players.
04What it means for each teamThis was a preseason tune-up, so neither team's record moves beyond 0-0 and nothing here affects the standings.
This was a preseason tune-up, so neither team's record moves beyond 0-0 and nothing here affects the standings. For Brooklyn, the paint scoring and bench production from Traore and Clowney are the takeaways. For Washington, Kyshawn George and Bilal Coulibaly gave the Wizards a scoring boost, but Trae Young's 8 turnovers and minus-16 plus-minus, along with the team's 20 giveaways overall, are the issue to clean up before the games start to count.
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