Nets again fall to 76ers, drop into 2-0 hole in their playoff series
The Nets' Cameron Johnson, right, dribbles the ball past the 76ers' De'Anthony Melton in the first half during Game 2 in the first round of the NBA playoffs Monday in Philadelphia. Credit: AP/Derik Hamilton
PHILADELPHIA — The Nets likely felt a sense of deja vu during Game 2 on Monday night. One of their players carried the offense early, but the 76ers had too much down the stretch.
The 76ers won, 96-84, at Wells Fargo Center thanks to 33 points from Tyrese Maxey and 20 each from Joel Embiid and Long Island’s Tobias Harris. They took a 2-0 lead in the first-round playoff series as the same Game 1 mistakes haunted the Nets.
The Nets were outscored 18-0 in second-chance points and gave up 13 offensive rebounds. Even with James Harden limited to eight points and Embiid putting up only 11 shots, it wasn’t enough. The Nets scored only 35 second-half points and shot 37.5% for the game.
“The only adjustment that was made was that ball didn’t go into the hole for us,” Nets coach Jacque Vaughn said.
Cam Johnson picked up the scoring load early with 22 of his 28 points in the first half. He made his first three shots and finished 5-for-11 on three-pointers.
It offset a quiet first half by Mikal Bridges, who shot 1-for-6 before halftime. Bridges faced frequent double-teams, and although he finished with 21 points, being targeted by the 76ers’ defense made it harder for him to shoot freely, as he did in Game 1 during his 30-point outing.
Still, the Nets led 49-44 at halftime after forcing 11 turnovers and holding the 76ers to 4-for-16 shooting on three-pointers.
“They just came out in a zone in the second half and that messed us up a little bit,” Bridges said. “They came out, had a little momentum and ran with it from there.”
That momentum was a 20-5 76ers run in less than five minutes of game action. The Nets never led again as their double- teams on Embiid again led to open shooters who capitalized. The 76ers made four three-pointers in that stretch, matching their entire first-half total.
The Nets managed to keep the deficit under double digits for most of the second half with their defense. The 76ers had 19 turnovers and finished with 11 three-pointers, far short of their 21 makes in Game 1.
A steal by Johnson led to a three-pointer by Seth Curry that brought the Nets within 76-71. But the 76ers pulled away as Maxey scored 18 second-half points.
“He was the beneficiary of a lot of our rotations. He was in that corner just waiting on those threes,” Johnson said. “And those ones are tough to give up because he’s just teeing them off, making them.”
Johnson had the game’s early highlight with a thunderous second-quarter dunk on Embiid that spun him around in a circle. With his scoring, the Nets led 45-35 and appeared to counter what the 76ers threw at them.
But the third quarter again proved costly. The Nets had only 14 points and failed to take advantage of holding Embiid in check shot-wise and Harden to only eight points.
Vaughn said before the game that the Nets needed hustle stats to be in their favor. But just like Game 1, they weren’t. As a result, the Nets return home for Game 3 on Thursday in a deep hole, needing more than one scorer to deliver.
“Do we need some other people to step up at home? Yes, we do. I’ll take all of them,” Vaughn said. “Anyone who wants to sign up, put them on a list, I’ll check that thing off. We need everybody to show up and be ready to play.”
Evan Barnes covers the Nets for Newsday. He previously covered Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.
