Nets relinquish 16-point halftime lead, fall to Raptors

TORONTO — DeMar DeRozan wouldn’t reveal exactly what was said in the Toronto Raptors’ locker room at halftime with his team down 16 points, though coach Dwane Casey’s message registered loud and clear.

The Raptors roared back to beat the Nets, 104-99, on Tuesday night in their first game since the franchise-record, 12-game home win streak ended Sunday against Houston.

“It’s was a good one,” DeRozan said of Casey’s rallying call. “It was one that we definitely needed and the way we came out in the second half definitely speaks volumes. He came in and really got onto us and we responded like we’re supposed to.”

DeRozan had 25 points, with Kyle Lowry adding 23 points and nine assists in the comeback victory from a 58-42 halftime hole that equaled Toronto’s biggest of the season, done in a loss at Golden State in November.

Brook Lopez had 35 points, one shy of his season high, for the Nets, who lost the season series to the Raptors for the first time since 2009-10. Lopez was also the only Net to reach the free-throw line, going 9-for-9.

“He’s our horse, he’s our guy,” interim coach Tony Brown said. “He had a great game tonight and we try to do as much as possible to get him the ball because he’s one of the few guys who had it going. Hell of a game by him and it’s just unfortunate we don’t get the ‘W.’ ”

For Casey, who had emphasized the need for better defense after recent lapses against Portland and Houston, the focus is not good enough for a team that’s challenging for the Eastern Conference lead.

“It shouldn’t take me going in at halftime and jumping up and down and challenging them,” he said. “We came out of the second half and that is who we have to be. But we have to start that at the beginning of the game.”

The Raptors shot just 3-for-15 from the floor in the second quarter but their defense stepped up after halftime, forcing a 22-9 run to close the third before four three-pointers in less than three minutes at the start of the fourth turned a two-point deficit into a 10-point lead.

“That’s a very good team,” Lopez said. “They’re in a great position in the East, they’re definitely contending in the East and contending in the league and we had a good showing. Unfortunately they went on that huge run and we weren’t able to claw quite back into it.”

Notes & quotes: The Nets have hired Trajan Langdon as assistant general manager. The former Duke star had a successful international career playing for Russia’s CSKA Moscow, owned by Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov. He spent the past four seasons working for the Spurs and Cavaliers.

He was a pro scout for San Antonio from 2012-15, when he worked with new Nets GM Sean Marks. Langdon has been with Cleveland since September as director of player administration and basketball operations.

Marks was hired last month to replace Billy King and said he planned to expand the Nets’ staff. He said Tuesday in a statement that Langdon “brings a unique combination of NBA and European experience to the position.”